The Promises They Kept
by ecv
Summary: Booth and Brennan do a bit too much celebrating after solving their case in Las Vegas. This story is AU. Timelines and characters from the show will be adjusted for this story.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: Sorry if this long..._

_~ This story is 100% AU. - I may include familiar cases from this time period, but will be adjusting plot lines and characters to make them fit this new world._

_~ It begins just after the conclusion of their case in Las Vegas during the second season_

_~ I have not written very far ahead, so while updates will be frequent, they won't come as often as I usually manage to do them_

_~ If you enjoy, please leave a review. It's been awhile since I posted a new story and I hope you enjoy reading this one._

_~ As usual, I don't own Bones. Still wish I did. _

A pounding headache finally forced her back to consciousness. It throbbed to the beat of her heart. Groaning, she opened her eyes slowly. Squinting seemed like the best option at that moment. A quick perusal of the room at least told her where she was.

Still in the hotel room in Vegas. After the fight and the confession, they'd returned to the connected rooms they'd shared for the case. But they'd been hesitant to leave for some reason.

They. Booth. She'd been there with Booth. Brennan turned her head slowly toward the other side of the bed, shocked to see her partner next to her. He continued to sleep, his breathing even and deep.

Confused, alarmed, Brennan ran her eyes from his head to his feet and was relieved to see he was still clothed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. Glancing under the covers, she realized it was the same for her. Even her bra was still firmly hooked around her. Brennan didn't like to jump to conclusion but she felt it was safe to assume that the two of them had done nothing but sleep in that bed.

The sheets were cool beneath her skin and she focused on the sensation to ground her back into the moment. Cool sheets and a hint of sunlight behind the tightly closed curtains. Still in Vegas and it was after sunrise.

Slowly, very slowly, she sat up and barely muffled a groan as the room spun before righting itself again. She made it to a seated position at the edge of the bed before she was forced to stop moving. The pause gave her time to try and remember what had happened the previous evening.

They'd solved the case. Clearly remembering that part, Brennan fast forwarded through the evening. Booth had been beaten pretty severely during the fight and she hadn't been comfortable with flying out that evening. Instead, they'd decided to celebrate before going home.

Avoiding the casino sections had been difficult, but they'd finally located a bar far enough from the noise that Booth had been comfortable enough to stay. There weren't many places in Vegas where the sounds of slots and gambling faded away into the background. But as a trained investigator, Booth had known who to ask and where to look.

Booth. Friend. Ally. Partner. Turning slowly she focused on his profile, his cheek pressed against the pillow beneath. Gentle fingers reached out to brush as his hair before quickly being drawn back again. It wasn't a good idea to touch him like that. It was too intimate, too personal.

He was handsome, a scientist couldn't deny facts. She'd never admit it, but a part of her regretted the year they hadn't spoken to each other. In just the short time they'd worked together, he'd become the rock she could and did lean on.

And if there were other feelings there? Feelings that ran further from friendship and more toward other things. She wasn't ready to say. But Brennan knew without a doubt there was little she wouldn't do for him.

Feeling a little more steady, she rose to her feet and stumbled her way toward the bathroom. The face looking back at her from the mirror had bloodshot eyes and pale skin. After using the facilities, she sat on the edge of the tub.

What had happened after they'd found the bar? There'd been a bottle. Or was it two bottles? She couldn't quite recall, but given how she looked and felt, Brennan was sure two was more accurate.

So it was a drunken celebration between friends and coworkers. She supposed it was possible, despite the fact that doing something like that was out of character for the two of them. But being here had been tough on Booth and she would have done anything to distract him.

Everything after the bar was a blur, but they had gone someplace else, she was sure of it. She could smell alcohol on her clothes and something else Brennan couldn't quite place. It had the acrid smell of smoke, but not from cigarettes. It smelled almost like candles.

Her heart stuttered as her brain took the opportunity to flash a single scene in her head. The two of them, standing in front of a lone man, a woman standing just to his left. He held a book in his hand and was smiling at the two of them. Surely, he'd been a bartender. There was no way they'd done what she was picturing in her head.

Stomach rolling, Brennan stumbled from the bathroom and looked frantically around the room. Booth's room. When they'd returned to the hotel, they'd both apparently collapsed into his bed. There had to be evidence here, if what she was seeing in her head was really the truth.

Nothing on the dresser or the nightstand. Not on top of his suitcase, either. She was ready to go back to her own room to look when she picked up a blanket that had fallen from the bed. There, hidden beneath, was the piece of paper she'd hoped not to find.

Two pieces of paper actually. A frantic search on her phone told her exactly what she feared. It was possible. For not a lot of money, either. She gave a brief thought to whose credit card they'd put it on. Knowing Booth, probably his. There was no way he'd let Brennan pay for their wedding.

A hysterical laugh tried to free itself from her chest. Desperately, she fought it back down. She wasn't sure what would happen if she gave it sound.

On those pieces of paper were hers and Booth's signatures. Surprisingly well written, too, considering how inebriated they must have been.

"Drunk enough to do without clearly remembering it, but not drunk enough that someone tried to stop us," she said.

Panic was starting to set in, teasing around edges that were fraying. She'd married Booth. Her partner. They'd had some quickie drunk wedding in Vegas that only happened in television shows she didn't watch.

"We're married," she whispered. Equal parts horrified and numb, she started at the papers, one in each hand. A license and a certificate. Filed and legal. Searchable by anyone who thought to look. The FBI would easily find record of it.

She'd just admitted to being willing to do anything for him, but marriage? What part of her brain had decided that was a good idea. Had alcohol pushed away all logic and allowed something else to take over? Emotions? What was hiding in the darkest recesses of her mind?

Frantic in a way she'd never felt before, Brennan threw the certificates on the bed next to a sleeping Booth. She needed to go back to DC and find a lawyer. Get this annulled before anyone knew what she'd done, what they'd done. This wasn't okay. It was never going to be okay.

Booth awoke to the sound of a suitcase being closed and zipped. Rolling over, he groaned, similar to the way his partner had when she awoke. As he opened his eyes, the scene he saw alarmed him enough to drive away the hangover that was waiting in the wings.

"Bones?" he asked. Her name came out roughly and he tried again. "Bones, what's wrong?"

She was pulling the suitcase toward the door and almost didn't stop when she heard him say her name. Instead, she froze in place and shook her head. "I have to go, Booth," she said.

Confused, he sat up and ran his hands over his face. The stubble made a rasping sound in the very silent room. "Are we going to miss our flight? Why didn't you wake me?" He blinked hard, trying to catch up. "How much did we drink last night?"

The laugh she gave was hollow. "Too much and not enough," she said cryptically. "There's a first class ticket waiting for you at the airport. Don't go back to the casino. I'll see you at the Lab."

He finally got to his feet. "What's going on here, Bones?" Looking down, he noted he was still fully dressed. Besides, they hadn't been that drunk. And he couldn't count the ways he'd hate himself if they'd had sex and he wasn't able to remember any of it. "I don't think anything happened we need to be embarrassed about."

Embarrassed? Definitely not. Terrified? Definitely.

"The ticket is at the airport, Booth. Just let me go, please." Dangerously close to begging, to tears she wouldn't be able to explain, Brennan fought the urge to simply run. He'd come after her if she tried.

"Turn around and look at me." It was a demand and Booth knew it. But he needed to see her face.

Anxiety and something he thought was fear battled in her eyes. He had never wanted to see that look directed at him. He searched through his memory, trying to recall what he'd done to her. "Did I hurt you, Bones?"

If he saw those papers, she'd never get to leave. A confrontation with him wasn't something she was ready to deal with. She hoped the only time they actually discussed this was to sign annulment papers. But he was her friend, a very, very good friend, and she wouldn't let him think he'd done something like that. "You didn't hurt me, Booth. Not with words or with your hands. But I need you to let me leave."

His eyes searched hers and he didn't like what he saw. But without a good reason, Booth wouldn't force her to stay. "All we did was share a bed, Bones. We've done that before. We're both fully clothed. I don't think anything else happened." When she didn't respond, he sighed in defeat. "I wish you'd wait. Or talk to me. I thought we could always talk to each other."

But her hand was already on the door. "I'm sorry, Booth," she said. "But I can't. You'll understand soon." Without an explanation for the odd comments, she hurried out the door and closed it firmly behind her.

The hand that had rubbed his cheek shifted to the back of his neck. "What. The. Hell."

Looking around the room, he noticed the papers on the bed. Shaking his head at the bizarre turn of events, he reached for them. A glance was all it took before the hangover that had been waiting slammed into him full force.

Willing himself not to be sick, he sank to the bed and put both next to him, one on each side. "No wonder she ran," he muttered. "How the hell did this actually happen?"  
Married? He'd married her? Clearly she'd awoken and remembered or found the evidence first. The panic and fear in her eyes made a lot more sense now. As did her rapid need to escape.

He hadn't hurt her, she'd been honest about that. But she was scared. Emotions were often too much for her to handle, especially when they confused her. He knew that. Why hadn't she just talked to him?

"She'll have annulment papers drawn up before I get back to DC." Shaking his head at the ridiculousness of the whole thing, he forced himself from the bed and toward the shower.

"Why didn't she just say something?" he asked the empty room. They or he, worked for the FBI. It was possible they could have had it taken care of before leaving the city. Now, it would take weeks, probably.

They could have laughed about it, Made it nothing more than a fond memory. But she'd run. Quicker than he thought was possible. What else was going on in that big brain of hers?

Did part of her not regret it? Did she want to stay married and didn't know how to tell him? Seemed hard to believe from his logical, love is all chemicals, scientist. But there had been something else there, behind the look she'd given him. It had been hard to focus on, covered so carefully by a look he was sure would haunt him.

Shaking his head, Booth knew he was getting nowhere. And he needed to get out of the city. He'd think and worry about this after he was cleaned up. And after he'd found some coffee.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: As always, thank you for all the follows, favorites and reviews._

_Now, on with our story._

Booth should have gone after her. It was his first thought when he was finally awake enough to think. If not after she'd run from the room, at least after he'd found the paperwork on the bed.

He chalked his reaction up to fatigue and the remains of the alcohol still in his system.

And shock. Yesterday at this time, he'd been single. Now he was married. It had been a strange twenty-four hours.

"Hey, I remember you. The FBI agent from last night! How's marriage treating you? And where is your pretty bride. Her grip on your hand was so tight, I wasn't sure she'd ever let you go."

Booth had taken a shower, packed his bags and left the motel. A quick check with the airport told him he wasn't leaving until that afternoon. Bones had given herself plenty of time to escape.

It had taken a lot of willpower to walk out of the casino without Bones to help him and he was angry with her for that. She knew what he'd gone through during this case and she'd left him to face the last several hours of it alone. And while he understood her panic at the thought of the two of them married, he couldn't overlook the fact that he was in Las Vegas alone.

How he felt about the marriage, Booth wasn't as sure. He had feelings for her, of that he was certain. But love? The kind that a marriage was built on? He would have liked time to explore any growing feelings before taking that step.

There'd been that kiss they'd shared a couple years before. That had produced some interesting fantasies. But marriage, based off a solid partnership and one kiss was a stretch.

Bones was his friend. Best friend if he was forced to give it a label. He could at least say he'd married his best friend. That didn't sound as bad as a wedding he couldn't recall.

He was a romantic, and if Booth was going to marry someone, he'd at least like to remember it after the event.

Which was why he was here, retracing their steps from the night before. His memory wasn't filling in the gaps very well. He hoped a visit to the place where it had happened might help that along.

At least it hadn't been a drive through chapel. Somehow, in his drunken state, he'd managed to find them a cute building just off the strip. And while it was still a quickie wedding joint, it wasn't so cheesy he felt like a total jerk for bringing Bones there.

Shit. Where was his mind even at? Was he upset about this marriage, or not?

The man who'd made the comment had appeared in several flashes of memory. An older gentleman with white hair and a happy smile, Booth wondered exactly how many weddings he'd performed over the years. And how many people couldn't remember them the next morning.

"And you didn't think we were too drunk to get married?" Booth demanded. "You just let random drunk people stroll in off the street and exchange vows?"

The gentleman slowed his steps and finally stopped a good distance away from Booth. "You seemed a little tipsy," he said with a shrug, "but you aren't the first tipsy couple Gwen and I have seen. Besides, I kind of make a living off drunk people strolling in and getting married. Sober people too. You two seemed like you were somewhere in the middle. Drunker than you looked?" he guessed.

"Gwen?" It was the name Booth recognized from the license. And the only thing he wanted to focus on in that speech. Booth figured it didn't matter whether they were drunk or sober. At the end, he and Bones were still married. "Was she the witness?"

"Yes, and my wife. I'm Greg." His blue eyes softened around the edges. "We met last night. It was Seeley Booth if I'm remembering correctly. An unusual name. I'm guessing you have some questions about what happened?"

Booth narrowed his eyes at him. "How do you know that?"

The chuckle was full of sympathy. "You aren't the first for that either." He motioned toward some white chairs. "Why don't we sit down."

Greg sat and waited until Booth settled into the row behind him. Turning, Greg threw an arm over the chair and smiled gently. "Do you remember any of it?"

Booth shook his head. "Flashes, mostly. Showing identification and signing papers. You. I have images of you standing in front of us." The papers were now folded carefully and carried in his pocket. "I take it everything has already been filed?"

Had Booth kissed her at the end? He couldn't remember. And was too embarrassed by their behavior to ask about that part.

Greg nodded. "First thing this morning. It's too late to prevent a record. But according to your identification, you're pretty far from home. No one has to know unless you tell them. File divorce papers and move on with your lives."

Easier said than done. "Were we…," Booth trailed off. Leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees, he dropped his head toward the floor. Knowing the only way to get the truth was to ask, Booth leaned back and squared his shoulders. "Did we look like we were in love, or at least that we liked each other? I wasn't…, she didn't…"

"You weren't forcing her to do anything," Greg said, reading his thoughts. The questions this man asked were fascinating and unusual. Most asked how to make it go away or were angry at the partner they'd married. This man was too concerned about the young woman he'd exchanged vows with not to care for her. "You held hands and answered all the questions. Both of you seemed, if not over the moon happy, at least content with what you were doing. Neither I, nor my wife, saw anything that made us uncomfortable with the event."

That was a relief. Booth had spent quite a few terrible minutes worrying that he'd forced Bones into doing something. Normally, she could easily defend herself, but if they'd both been that drunk, it was hard to say.

"If you don't love each other, a quickie marriage is pretty to easy to fix. Especially if both of you agree it was a mistake," Greg offered. "It probably won't ruin what you had before you walked in here."

Booth snorted. "Not sure I can define what we had before," he admitted. "We were friends. We _are _friends," he corrected. "Had the potential to be something more, once upon a time. But I was sure that opportunity had long passed us by."

Why he was confessing to this man, a stranger, Booth had no idea. But the longer he was separated from Bones, the more he was struggling with what had happened. Frustrated and angry with her decision to run instead of stay, Booth was desperate for some sort of guidance. A man who knew nothing about their history and would never see them again seemed like the safest bet at that moment.

Besides, who could he call? He doubted Bones would tell anyone and if she didn't want anyone to know, he had no intention of breaking that confidence.

Not that he wanted to share it either. How would they ever explain what happened to their colleagues and friends?

"Alcohol has a way of lowering inhibitions. There was something there, between both of you, that made you guys think it was a good idea. I've seen drunken weddings before. And I've known those weddings won't last longer than the hangover. I didn't see that between the two of you. It was more like the drinks gave you both the courage to do something you'd always wanted but were afraid to admit to."

Greg sympathized with the man in front of him, but knew he wasn't wrong. There had been love between the man and the woman he'd married the previous evening. "Have you tried to talk to her?" Greg asked when the silence stretched on.

"Took off before I could." Booth rose and started toward the door. Similar to the way he'd just decided to do. "I need to get home, but my flight doesn't leave for too many hours. Maybe I can go back to the bar until then."

"It's Vegas," Greg said, also rising. "There's plenty to do here to keep you busy."

The wild, panicked look that flew through the other man's eyes gave Greg pause. He recognized that look. "Tell you what," he offered suddenly. "Why don't you come into the back with me. I have a couple of jobs I could use a second man to finish. And as much as I love my wife, she isn't very handy. Then I'll drive you to the airport."

"You don't know me," Booth said. He was alarmed at how much he wanted to turn down the man's offer and go back to the casinos. He also knew he was going to have to take the hand that was being offered. It was more than what Bones had given him. "I could be a crazy serial killer."

"You could," Greg agreed. "But I'll take my chances. You catch serial killers. At least that's what I'm guessing. You used your work id, not a driver's license. You aren't one. A serial killer, I mean."

Booth swallowed and forced himself to nod. "Thank you."

"Come on," Greg said, leading him through a hidden door to the area behind. "You can tell me all about that pretty girl you married."

Shaken, relieved at the kind offer, Booth followed him. "Bones," he said as he disappeared into the back. "I call her Bones."

OoOoOoOoOo

Brennan felt guilty as soon as the plane was in the air. But until that point, she hadn't been able to think.

She was married. Temperance Brennan, scientist, didn't believe in marriage. Didn't believe love was anything but chemicals. Chemicals and feelings that faded as a relationship aged. As with all other things, eventually the man that thought he loved her would leave her behind.

Booth was more than just her work partner. He was her best friend, had helped her when she wasn't sure who she even was. When her identity had been torn into pieces.

Now, she didn't know who she was again. Was she just a scientist who spent most of her time standing over dead bodies? Was she even capable of loving someone enough to sustain a relationship, much less a marriage?

And why was she even thinking about the marriage when it would end as soon as the lawyers could pull up the paperwork? There was no way she'd consider ever trying to make this farce work.

She didn't love him. Wasn't even sure what love was. Marriage wasn't something Brennan could do or understand.

But she worried now. Worried that she'd left him at the worst time in the worst possible place. Was worry love? Brennan honestly didn't know.

Her phone was in her lap where she'd finally left it. She checked it a hundred times before getting on the plane, looking for a message from Booth. And there were the hundred other times she'd started to text him before erasing what she'd written.

There was no way he hadn't seen the marriage license and certificate by now. What wasn't he calling her in a panic, demanding to know what had happened? Or asking what they planned to do about it? Instead there was nothing but silence.

She half expected him to show up at the airport, but he hadn't done that either. She didn't understand any of it and had no one to turn to for help.

Her biggest fear was that he was gambling. She'd left him in a place where he was vulnerable and Brennan hated herself for it. Hated that her lack of emotional understanding had forced her to run before considering the consequences.

There was no one for her to talk about this with. Except Booth. They'd have to talk about it to end the fake marriage. How could they be partners and not talk about it? It would color every conversation they'd have for the near future. Possibly long after that. And she'd have to pretend everything was okay between them when it clearly wasn't.

She didn't want to figure this out or analyze emotions she didn't understand. Was there a chance Booth would fight her on this? What if he wanted to stay married? That was ridiculous. He couldn't love her like the. There was no way it was possible.

"I can't do this," she whispered. Toying with the phone in her lap, twisting it over and over again, she finally turned it on. And paid for the inflight phone service.

_I'm sorry_

She couldn't think of what else to say. Except she could.

_Are you okay?_

It wasn't what she wanted to ask. Brennan wanted to ask if he was gambling. If she'd made a choice that had hurt him beyond repair.

When no response came, the anxiety made her stomach ache. She was on the verge of a full blown panic attack when her phone vibrated.

_Fine_

One word that answered her question and told her nothing. Alarmed to realize she was close to tears, again, she turned the phone off and put it into her bag. Closing her eyes, Brennan didn't speak again. And barely moved until her plane touched down in DC, afraid that any movement would shatter her like glass.


	3. Chapter 3

Booth debated during the flight back to DC. At least Bones had left him first class tickets so he could brood without being disturbed. He argued with himself when he retrieved his vehicle out of long term parking.

It wasn't the right time for a confrontation. Better in the morning, when he was well rested and was prepared to say the right things. To reassure Bones that they could figure this out, come up with a plan that would work for both of them.

But he still used his key to enter her apartment mere seconds after his angry knock went unanswered.

He owed Greg, a man he barely knew, a debt of gratitude he could never repay. He'd kept both Booth's mind and hands occupied when he needed help the most.

Booth knew it had been more than just being in Las Vegas. Yes, the noise and the lights were tempting, in ways he hadn't experienced in a long time. But he faced that battle each afternoon when he drove past the pool hall on the way back to his house. It was a battle he won every afternoon and Booth was proud of that fact.

It was the marriage that was driving him over the edge. The impromptu wedding and being left behind by the woman who'd made promises she had no intention of keeping.

Which wasn't fair and he knew it. Knew how she felt about an institution Booth thought was sacred. Yes, his parents' marriage had been a disaster, but his grandparents had lasted until the day his grandmother died. That's what Booth wanted and used as his own example.

Now? Now he was married to a woman who was going to do everything in her power to end it before it began. Not that Booth necessarily disagreed with that. He felt like he was being torn down the middle and he didn't know which way he wanted to turn.

The only thing he was sure of, the only emotion that rang clear and true, was the anger at being left behind.

"You left me," he accused. She met him halfway across the room, her mouth open to offer what Booth assumed was an apology. One he didn't want. Her feet were bare, but she wore the same clothes she'd walked out of the hotel room in. "You left me in the worst possible place. I don't care what happened last night. You couldn't put it aside long enough to help me get out of that damn city in one piece?"

He pinched the bridge of his nose, immediately annoyed at himself for raising his voice to her.

Anger, Brennan thought, she could deal with. Anger was an emotion she recognized. He was right to be angry with her. She'd expected it and had almost looked forward to it.

Her cheeks were damp. Booth knew she'd been crying. He thought she looked as if she was going to shatter like the glass she'd placed down so carefully before standing. He had no idea it was exactly how she felt.

Booth wanted to touch her but didn't dare. The irony almost made him laugh. Married to a woman he didn't dare touch, even to comfort her. Something he would have done only yesterday, when they were nothing but best friends.

One piece of paper and promises he couldn't remember making had changed everything.

"Did you?" she asked quietly. "Make it out in one piece?" It was all she'd been able to think about for hours. That and the fact that the angry man standing in front of her was now her husband.

She wasn't single anymore. When she signed in to see him at the Hoover, she could write Mrs. Seeley Booth. Not that she would. Brennan the scientist would never refer to herself using a man's name.

Brennan the woman? She didn't even know who that person was. Never taken the time to find out. Now this other Brennan, a person she didn't recognize and didn't know how to deal with was trying to find her way.

But that didn't change the fact that she was now his wife. Legally. Could she hide it that from the world? And from her own very troubled heart?

"No thanks to you," he snapped. He ran a hand through his hair. "I owe the guy who married us for that."

She paled. "I want to apologize for what I did, Booth."

"I don't want it." HIs hand waved in the air, as if he could brush the words away.

Her brow furrowed and he knew what she would say before the words made it to his ears. "I don't know what that means."

The sigh was loud. Booth didn't know either, what it meant that he knew her thoughts so easily. "It means I'm not ready to listen to it yet. It means I'll be ready eventually, but I don't want it tonight because I'm too angry to hear it."

"Okay," she said softly. "Let me know when you're ready." Moving past him so carefully no part of them touched, she opened the refrigerator. "Can I get you something?"

"Don't do that, Bones," he said. Even though he'd avoided reaching for her only moments before. Pulling out a chair at her kitchen table, he collapsed down into it, kicking his feet out in front of him. "Don't suddenly act like you're afraid of me. Like touching me accidentally means something that it doesn't."

The fridge slammed shut. Gripping the handle until her knuckles turned white, she fought to calm her swirling emotions. "I'm doing the best I can, Booth. But there is too much going on in my head and I can't make sense of it."

"It's only a piece of paper that says we are married, Bones. It's easily fixed since I'm pretty sure, no positive, we didn't actually sleep together after we did it."

Brennan turned and leaned against the appliance. Her hands were tucked behind her back. They shook, hadn't stopped shaking since the flash of memory in the bathroom of the hotel. "It's more than a piece of paper. We got _married, _Booth. You don't believe in divorce. I don't believe in marriage. Even I can see that's a problem."

"I also don't believe in staying married to a woman who doesn't want me that way," he said softly. His eyes stayed focused on his feet, not wanting to see what was in her eyes. Or what might not be there. "And unless something changed in the last two days, I'm pretty sure you don't want to be married to me."

"It's not you, Booth. I don't want to be married to anyone. Not now. Maybe not ever. I don't know what I was thinking. DIdn't know I could stop thinking so completely. It wasn't rational," she hissed.

"You didn't do this by yourself, Bones. We both stood in front of Greg, that's the guy who married us, and said vows to each other. Made promises. I'm sure it was beautiful."

The sarcasm was clear, even to her. "You don't remember it either?"

"Almost nothing. But according to Greg, even when we are at our most drunk, we can act as if we are close to sober. A little terrifying if you think about it."

She didn't comment, but came to the table and pulled out the chair next to him. "What do we do, Booth? I plan to call my lawyer in the morning."

He was surprised she hadn't done so already. "We get an annulment," he said easily, if a little bitterly. The thought of ending any marriage that way caused him a little twinge of guilt. Marriage was for life, at least he'd hoped it would be for him. But he'd meant what he said. Booth wouldn't force a woman into anything.

"Are you sure it will be that easy?" Brennan asked carefully. She knew her partner well enough to tell that he was upset. She just wasn't sure what to say or what he was even upset about. Being left in Vegas or being married to her.

"You're the one with the fancy lawyers. Surely they can find a way out of this. You found a way out of Las Vegas." Shit. He was angrier than he realized. It wasn't like him to throw things in her face like that.

"I can't tell if you are mad about the wedding, a divorce, or me abandoning you in Las Vegas, Booth."

"I'm not angry about the wedding. Not at you. We were both drunk and we both did it. It can be fixed. Probably could have been fixed easier if you hadn't run home so quickly. But I'm sure we can find a way out of it."

Since she didn't disagree, Booth figured that was exactly what she wanted. He'd give it to her.

"So it's leaving you behind then. You said earlier you weren't ready for my apology. If that's the case, why are we still talking about this? I don't know how to fix it other than apologizing, Booth. I don't know how to fix any of this."

"It was something we could have done together. You hurt me, Bones. I needed you and you walked away from me because you were scared of a piece of paper." Running a hand through his hair, Booth realized he was talking them in circles. And he was exhausted.

"It's not a piece of paper," she snapped. "It's everything it represents. Antiquated rituals of women treated like property. I don't want it. It goes against everything I believe. Love doesn't last. Marriage doesn't last. People always leave."

Booth closed his eyes and nodded. "Looks like the leaving works both ways," he said softly. Opening his eyes, he met hers across the table. They felt much further apart than that. "Well, I guess that clears up how you feel about being married to me," he said, rising to his feet. "Call your lawyer tomorrow. I'll sign whatever I need to sign. Sorry that I've made you feel like property."

"Booth," she said, trying to stop him. "That's not what I meant. It's not you. It's marriage I'm not comfortable with."

"I think you made your feelings pretty clear, Bones. I'm going to ask that you not tell anyone about this and I'll do the same. I wouldn't want people to think something of you that you rather they didn't."

"Booth," she repeated. But there was something to the tone of her voice that had him stopping. Turning he looked at her and realized that while he hadn't hurt her last night, he'd definitely done so tonight.

"What, Bones?"

"Are we going to survive this?" she whispered.

The comment took longer than it should have to make sense to him. "As friends?"

Her nod was slow.

Booth considered the question a little too long. "Don't know, Bones." He shook his head and opened the door to let himself out. "I really don't know."

For Brennan, that was more terrifying than being married.

OoOoOo

Outside, after he'd made it to a place where she couldn't see him, Booth paused and leaned against a wall. He didn't know what he was doing. Every word out of his mouth indicated that he wanted things to go back to the way they used to be.

But every time he took long enough to think about it, he was forced to consider the opposite. That what he wanted, in the deepest part of himself, was to move forward from this point with Bones.

Beneath the anger was fear. Fear of what this meant for the two of them. For the first time in a long time, he couldn't see the path forward.

Work the problem. That's what he'd learned during his time in the service, his time at the FBI academy. Label the problem and work it. Finish the first step before moving on to the next. One problem, one foot in front of the other, until the situation was manageable again.

He was the first problem. Booth had to figure out what he wanted before another step could be taken.

Pushing himself off the wall, he started back toward the SUV. What was it going to take for him to figure that out?


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: Please remember this story is AU. This chapter and at the next take place during and immediately following Aliens in a Spaceship, a top ten episode for me. I have changed some (a lot) of the facts to go with this story. _

_Thank you for the follows, reviews and favorites. It's nice to see people are still interested in stories from Bones._

_OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO_

Booth wanted to apologize. He owed her that. He'd been unnecessarily cruel when she'd needed him to be calm. When they'd needed to talk about how to handle what they'd done.

His anger had been overwhelming and the longer he'd been on that plane, the more time he'd had to think about it. Unfortunately, Booth also knew it was an avoidance technique. As long as he thought about being in Vegas alone he didn't have to consider the fact that he'd married Bones.

The morning had been uncomfortable at best. At least the new case had given them an excuse to speak to each other.

About absolutely nothing.

Her eyes had met his and darted away. "It's not aliens, Booth. It's children."

And at that moment, their mistake seemed to pale in comparison. Cases with children were the worst. "I liked it better when they were aliens."

"Me, too," she agreed. And looked at him with sympathy before turning away again. For a moment, she'd allowed herself to forget, to think everything was the same as it had been a week ago.

Brennan hadn't slept much the night before and didn't think the nights in her immediate future would be much different.

She wanted to research what love was, what marriage meant. To try and put it into fancy scientific words that would help her understand why her heart ached and her brain couldn't accept either a marriage or a divorce.

In the end, she hadn't risen from her bed to look up either. It didn't matter what the journals said or what scientists thought. They were married. And she still didn't know what it meant to love or be loved by someone.

Could she accept a marriage she didn't want, or a separation that would take from her all that she'd come to rely on?

"We need to talk, Bones." He licked his lips. "We need to find a time and place to discuss this."

Several agents had glanced at them before turning away again. Squatting down next to her, he kept his voice low. "We can't let this go, Bones. It's going to get away from us if we aren't careful."

She nodded but then shook her head. "Later, Booth. We need to do this first."

"You won't be able to hide in your work forever," he warned her before stepping away.

That was the only time the whole marriage thing had even been alluded to. After that it was talking to the parents of the missing teenagers and working the case.

She used the work to distract her. To hide in plain sight. Booth understood it, even if it frustrated him. Eventually, he would have to go to her. Or take her to dinner. The first step was always going to be his.

Back in his office, the future was no clearer than it had been that morning. Rising from his desk, he closed and locked the door. Then pulled the shade to block himself from prying eyes. Only then did he go to his window, to stare and give himself a moment to just think.

The little bit of research he'd completed wasn't very promising. Annulment was looking less and less likely. It appeared they would have to go through a formal divorce. Easily found by anyone who cared to look. And someone, someday would find it. Of that he was certain. It would come up in any background checks the FBI chose to perform in the future. And in security clearances he would apply for as he climbed the ladder at the agency.

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he considered how this one night was going to impact the rest of his life. Booth couldn't see a way out of it that ended well. He was going to get a divorce and ruin his future career. Or stay married and break his own heart.

What was he going to do?

Some decisions were easy. He had no intention of telling anyone, especially his employers. That action alone probably broke several policies Booth wasn't aware of. He didn't care. For the moment, he wouldn't have been able to answer any of their questions anyway. And the answers he had didn't paint him or Bones in a favorable light.

But Booth did pull out several forms to add her to his emergency contacts and next of kin. No explanation was required for the change. It was stupid really, they wouldn't be married for long. He did it anyway.

There was a little voice in his head, one he was trying to ignore that encouraged him to fight for her. To fight for a relationship that didn't even exist. He was halfway in love with her already. He could fall all the way, Booth knew that.

Which only increased his discomfort. He'd be in love, and married, to a woman who didn't want him. That statement the night before hadn't been wrong. Bones hadn't tried to argue it. She didn't feel that way.

Maybe, if he gave her a chance, Bones could find her way there. Was it such a long path between best friends to love? Could he find a way to persuade her to find that path with him?

He needed her in his life. There had to be a way. But they were going to have to communicate, not a virtue for either of them.

As he rose from his desk again to find her at the Jeffersonian, the phone rang. And his entire world stopped spinning.

OoOoOo

When the timer counting down their oxygen ran out, when it appeared there wasn't any time left for them, Booth descended the stairs of the platform and found an empty bathroom. There was no place to hide in this stupid building and he just needed a moment.

A moment to fear and to hope. A moment to find the faith he had in his partner, his friend.

In his wife.

Bracing his hands on the edge of the sink, he met his own eyes in the mirror above. When was the last time he'd slept well? Ate a full meal? He worried Bones wasn't taking care of herself and now neither was he. There was fear and desperation in the gaze. Booth was no longer sure he could hide it from the team outside.

Bones was buried alive somewhere. He refused to believe she and Hodgins hadn't found a way, no matter what that stupid timer said. They were alive and it was up to him and the team that was left to find them. He would't let her stay beneath the ground forever. The thought was unacceptable.

Booth wouldn't stand at her funeral before he had a chance to stand as her husband.

"Booth?" Cam knocked on the door outside. She'd seen him enter the restroom and thought he shouldn't be alone. "I know it's the men's room but can I come in?"

Sighing, Booth didn't answer. Cam waited patiently as she heard him pull towels from the dispenser and run the water. Finally, when she was ready to knock again, he opened the door.

Booth shook his head before she spoke. "Private. Without people."

"Follow me," Cam ordered.

His footsteps were soft behind her, but she felt his presence. The desperate hope he carried filled the space as they walked. If they didn't find the scientists soon, he was going to lose it. And it would be ugly. She pitied whoever would be on the receiving end of his rage.

He followed without thinking or paying attention. Then wished he would have given their twists and turns more thought.

Cam brought him to Limbo. Bones's place of solitude. It made him feel closer to her and never so far away.

"There are no security cameras here. Well, there are some, but not many, and most of the room isn't covered. A person could hide here, if they needed to. I think that's why Dr. Brennan comes here so much. I thought you might want a place where you could feel close to her. And you did ask for private."

Wandering without speaking, Booth saw signs of her everywhere. In the meticulous way the desk was organized and her handwriting on various sheets of paper. He ran his fingers across where she'd signed her name on one. "I'm sure they're still alive, Cam."

"Of course," she agreed, though her voice was less than sure. "The people we care about aren't going to die today."

Booth turned toward her. "Not too long ago you wanted to fire Bones," he said after a pause.

"It would have been a mistake," Cam said. "I see that now. We are just two strong women who had to find a way to work together. But she is brilliant and so is Dr. Hodgins. They're alive and we'll find them."

When Booth didn't respond, Cam nodded. "You can talk to me, you know. I've never broken a confidence. You, of all people, probably know that better than anyone."

He shook his head, rattling the items he always carried in his pocket. "I said some things. Things that I hope won't be the last things I said to her." Specific enough she'd probably let it go. Vague enough to not give away that he'd actually married her. Not that anyone would guess that.

"You and Dr. Brennan are always saying things to each other. Other people would see it as fighting. Few people can be as comfortable with each other as the two of you are. I'm sure whatever you said, whatever happened, she's already forgiven you for."

Booth doubted that, but it was nice to think it was true.

Cam considered the man in front of her and saw too much. Her relationship with Booth had been hot but brief. It would never have evolved into anything more serious than it had been.

She only needed to see Booth and Dr. Brennan together a couple of times to know who held his heart.

"Booth," she said, waiting until he turned. She pressed her lips together and considered her next words carefully. "I know, in a place you don't want to think about, that you know this might not end well. It's the same place all of us are avoiding right now."

He'd been prepared to be angry until she'd admitted they were all fighting similar battles. What would she say if she'd known it was his wife buried alive? Not just a partner or a friend, but his wife.

"But you are going to have to hold it together for a little while longer," Cam said, bringing his thoughts back. "We need you. That team upstairs needs you to push them and force them to think outside their scientific boxes. They won't give up because you won't give up. Right now, you are the only thing keeping them, keeping us, from true fear."

"That's a lot of pressure, Cam. And I don't think I'm the only one." He tilted his head toward her, making it clear who he was thinking of.

She managed a laugh, but it was hollow. "Oh, I'm terrified. Your faith in Dr. Brennan is holding me together too. Don't stop."

"She's still alive, Cam. That's not faith. It's who she is."

"And that's what we need. Take a couple of minutes and pull it together. Then come back and be the guy we need you to be."

When her footsteps faded into the distance, Booth collapsed into a chair and held his head in his hands. "Please, God," he prayed. "Give her whatever she needs to get through this. I need her."

After a second prayer, he rose to his feet and squared his shoulders. The fear and the doubt were closed into a box and shoved in a dark corner of his mind. It was time to find them.

OoOoOoOo

He ran. Ran because there was no way he wouldn't. A single puff. If he had blinked, had looked away even for an instant, he would have missed it.

In the small amount of time it took him to get there, he knew he'd made his choice. He wasn't sure when it had happened. When she'd been accused of murder and he'd flown down to help her? When her entire identity was pulled from beneath her feet? Snapshots of the time they'd spent together flashed in front of his eyes as he ran.

Booth figured it didn't matter when or why. What mattered was that moment.

He wasn't half way in love with her. There was no half way. It was the entire way. He loved her. That decision hadn't been as hard as he'd thought. The harder battle would follow. But if he could find her beneath a smooth track of gravel, Booth could get her used to the idea of him loving her.

The hand he grabbed was warm. It was his first thought. Warmth meant life.

The gravel pulled and refused to let go. But Booth, driven by a terror he'd ignored and the hope that fueled him, pulled harder.

Shoulders, hips, until most of her rested on top of the gravel.

And when Hodgins was safe, and as the van pulled in behind them, he shared a smile with her before reaching out with both hands and pulling her into his arms.

"I'm not letting go, Bones," he whispered into her hair. And knew he meant more than that moment.

Now that he'd helped save her life, he had to find a way to persuade her to spend it with him.


	5. Chapter 5

"You are not staying alone," he argued for the hundredth time. "We don't know who took you."

"The Gravedigger," she interrupted.

"And it isn't safe for you to be alone right now," he continued as if she hadn't spoken.

They were in his SUV on the way back to her place. She'd been cleared by the doctors and allowed to leave the hospital. He could feel the growing tension between them and knew he was the cause. Refusing to leave her side since pulling her from her own grave, Booth's presence was starting to push at her independence.

Someone was going to have to budge. It wasn't going to be him.

"He didn't take me from my apartment, Booth. He took me from the garage. I'm perfectly safe in my own home."

He snorted and kept his eyes on the road. "I don't care where you think you're safe. I'm not leaving your side. I'll sleep in the damn SUV if I have to."

She wanted to tell him that was leaving her side, but didn't dare. There was a time when being literal served a purpose. This wasn't one of them.

The tension in his shoulders was clear and his knuckles were white as they gripped the steering wheel. But she couldn't let him in, let him get too close. All paths forward were leading to disaster.

She'd had faith in him under that ground. Hodgins had told her so and while she'd disagreed with him at the time, Brennan knew Hodgins had been right. Knowing Booth was working above ground had given her the courage not to give up. Booth haunted her every thought, every decision she made. Brennan didn't know how to reconcile that fact with her scientific beliefs about love.

Pulling in front of the apartment building, he slammed the vehicle into park. "So are you going to let me in, or should I get comfortable out here?"

"Booth, I"m not sure, given everything thing that's happened, that us staying together is a good idea." It wasn't the right time to bring it up, but would there ever be a right time? There would always be another case, or more excuses to avoid the topic.

He slammed his hand into the steering wheel. "I don't care if we're married, Bones. Hell, I don't even care if you like me right this second. Me staying with you isn't about you, it's about me." Booth refused to look at her, keeping his eyes focused straight ahead. The stress of Las Vegas, the marriage and her near death was tearing him apart. Staying with her, at least for the night, was the only way he'd get through it.

Her eyes widened and she bit her lip. Then went with an instinct she typically ignored. The move was tentative, but she reached out to place her hand on his. Surprised by the touch, he flipped his hand over to grasp hers. "I can't," he said, looking at their clasped hands, "go home tonight, Bones."

"I'm okay, Booth." She wasn't, but was too proud to admit it.

"I'm not," he said, alarmed to hear his voice shake. He swallowed and took a breath. "I just need to be able to check on you. To know that when I wake up, it isn't some sort of dream and I won't be able to tell which is real."

Those nightmares were the worst. When he opened his eyes and couldn't remember which was the dreamscape and which was his current life.

She gave his hand a squeeze before letting go. Other than the moments in the gravel pit, it was one of the few touches they'd shared since Las Vegas. "You should have just said so. You can stay in the guest room." Maybe, if he was close, her own nightmares wouldn't come.

"Bones," he said. Booth grabbed her arm, forcing her to wait in the vehicle with him. "I know, we both know, that we need to talk. But for tonight, maybe we can just put it away."

Brennan wasn't sure where she was supposed to put it. The issue was so big it was taking over her life. But she nodded her head, because it was what Booth needed. "Get your bag, Booth. I'll go inside and order us takeout. There's plenty of time for the rest."

There wasn't and she knew it. Brennan knew the longer she stayed married, the more she might get used to the idea. Leaning on Booth was already becoming too much of a habit. But Booth was right. For tonight, she needed to put it away.

The fact that he wouldn't leave her side was an annoyance. Until he'd let her see what was underneath. Brennan didn't understand emotions, but she liked to think she understood her partner. If he needed this one night in her place, by her side, she could give him that.

That wasn't love. It was being a good friend.

And why did it matter to her what label she gave it, Brennan wondered. It seemed she felt the need to put a label on every interaction they had now.

Booth pulled his bag from the back of the vehicle and followed her into her place. "I'll just go into the spare bedroom and stay there. I just want to close my eyes for a while."

It was uncomfortable between them and he hated it. But he was too tired to do anything about it.

"We can't get an annulment," she blurted at his retreating back. "I looked into it and called my lawyers before I was kidnapped."

Dropping the bag as his feet, he turned to see her twisting her fingers into knots. It appeared that neither of them could truly push it to the side. "I know, Bones. I did my own research. Looks like we're getting a divorce." He tried for a smile but it came out as more of a grimace. "We'll iron out the details tomorrow. Come get me when the food gets here."

Picking up his bag, he closed the door firmly behind him and Brennan knew it meant she wasn't welcome in that room. He wanted privacy. She could give him that.

Except, looking around the room, she wasn't sure she was ready to be alone. Seemed Booth knew her better than she knew herself.

In the bedroom, Booth fell onto the bed. Forcing his eyes closed, he knew sleep wouldn't come. Instead he put his folded arms behind his head and opened his eyes to stare at the ceiling. He was content to listen to the sounds around him, knowing Bones was the one making the noise.

He didn't believe she was okay. But until she let him in, Booth wasn't going to push. To do so would only drive her further away.

So Booth waited for a sign she was ready to let him in.

Now that she was home safe, Brennan couldn't relax. The car and the darkness were right there, waiting for her to lower her defenses. Ready to remind her how it felt to be on the verge of death, hope fading with the oxygen.

She folded the blanket on the back of the couch three times before going to the kitchen to get a drink. Then she washed the glass. But it wasn't clean enough, so she washed it again. Brennan decided all of the glasses weren't clean enough. Pulling them out of the cupboard she placed them all next to the sink to wash.

Pausing only long enough to answer the door when the food arrived, Brennan washed each glass over and over again. Whenever she thought about stopping, either the car or the marriage were waiting for her. So she kept washing to keep those thoughts at bay, the movements both repetitive and mindless.

It was the smell of food and the sound of running water that pulled him back out of the room. He noted the unopened food containers and the glasses on each side of the sink.

"Bones," he said. The water had been running for some time, he'd been keeping track. When she didn't turn, he called her name again, louder to be heard over the running water. After a third attempt without a response, he came forward to stand directly behind her.

She had to know he was there. All he had to do was lean forward to have the length of his body pressed to hers. "Temperance. Stop." His voice was soft next to her ear. Reaching around her, he turned off the water, then wrapped both arms firmly around her trapping her in his embrace.

She struggled briefly and on a different day would have put up more of fight. Instead, Brennan collapsed back into him. "I need to sit," she managed.

Loosening his grip, but not releasing her, Booth lowered her to the floor right there in the kitchen. When he was done, he had her seated between his legs, her body curled into him. He rested his back against the cupboards beneath the sink and just held on.

"You need sleep, Bones. We both do." Her hand was pressed to his chest. It was wrinkled and red from the time in the water. Reaching around her, Booth pulled her tight against him, taking that hand to hold in his.

It felt like her body vibrated, she was shaking so hard. Booth whispered nonsense to her, his voice low, until it started to subside. "Let me take you to your room."

Her head shook against his chest. "I can't sleep. It's dark when I close my eyes."

"Then we'll leave the lights on," he said evenly. "We'll turn on every one in this place if that's what it takes."

"Did you really want to stay for you?" she asked. The exhaustion was clear in her voice, but Booth knew she wasn't ready to give in.

"Partly," he admitted. "I knew you wouldn't admit that you wanted me to stay. But yes, a lot of my request was for me." In the position he'd situated them in, Booth could just barely see her face. "Let me take you to bed, Bones."

"I can't." Her voice had faded to the point he could barely hear it. "I don't understand what it might mean if I let you stay."

"It means you need a friend, we both do. It won't mean anything more than that." In his lap, he shook her gently. "I'm sure, somewhere in the vows we don't recall, we made promises to protect each other. It's no different from the promise we've kept as partners. Tonight, we'll protect each other from the nightmares. It won't mean more than that. Not if you don't want it to."

He'd give anything to remember what they'd said to each other. To remember what her eyes looked like as they exchanged vows. It was cruel that he could recall none of it.

When she walked away, he would have liked that memory to help carry him through.

The silence lasted so long, he wondered if she'd simply fallen asleep. "Okay, Booth. We'll do it your way. But only for tonight." Pushing away from him, she forced herself to her feet. "But you aren't carrying me."

_OoOoOo_

He woke to Brennan yelling his name. He could feel her hand on his arm, shaking him gently. The last thing he saw before the dream let him go were Brennan's very dull, lifeless eyes.

"I'm here," he said, reaching out blindly. She caught his hand in the air and pushed it back down again. His skin was clammy and slick with sweat.

"Say something, Bones. Just talk for a minute." He needed the sound of her voice in his mind to drive away the dream. To know she lived and hadn't died.

"I'm not sure what to talk about." She sat down next to him on the bed, crossing her legs to face him. Tilting her head, she ran through the catalog of scientific facts she knew that would mean nothing to him. "Hodgins called me baby when we were in the car. He told me it was a reflex."

Booth fully opened his eyes as they finally adjusted to the blazing light. As he'd promised, every light in the place was on. Of all the topics, she picked the one thing he was desperate to escape. But if talking about it helped her, he'd do it. "I'm sure he didn't mean anything by it."

"He's in love with Angela. He's also really rich."

"So are you," Booth pointed out.

Brennan shook her head. "He told me I was well-off. I guess that means he has significantly more money than me." She shrugged. "Money doesn't mean a lot to me anyway."

"That's cause you have it. What time is it?"

Brennan looked toward the clock. "Five. We've been asleep for a few hours."

Reaching out, Booth covered her bent knee with his palm. She wore a long t-shirt and shorts, leaving her skin bare. Gently, he slid his thumb back and forth. "Did you get any sleep?"

"Some," she admitted. Brennan knew she should pull away, but the simple touch comforted her in a way that words couldn't. "We still have a few hours."

"More than that, Bones. We need more sleep if we have any hope of catching the Gravedigger."

He expected her to leave, to go back to her room, when she stood and walked toward the door. Instead she turned the lights off in the room, throwing them into shadow. Booth threw the covers back and waited for her to climb into the opposite side of the bed. Coming to rest on her stomach, she turned her face toward him, her hand between them. "This doesn't mean anything, Booth," she said allowing her eyes to close. "You'll sleep better if I'm close." And so would she.

Mirroring her position, he placed his hand over hers in the center of the bed. "Whatever you say, Bones. This doesn't mean anything at all."


	6. Chapter 6

He woke to find the place next to him empty, along with the rest of the house. "Seriously, Bones?" he grumbled, heading toward the shower. "I'm going to have to tie you down to actually have a conversation with you."

The rest of his night and early morning had been untroubled by dreams. But now, his stomach was tied in knots. Every action she performed, she kept reminding him that it meant nothing.

If that was really the truth, why did Bones feel the need to keep saying it to him?

He felt like he was reading too much into everything. Analyzing every gesture and every word to see if she might be interested in being with him.

Booth thought he'd make a good husband. He had a good job. Yes, it was often dangerous, but Bones understood that. He wouldn't cheat and wouldn't smother her. Well, he'd try not to. No promises on that one. Sometimes what he saw as protection others viewed a different way.

There was his son to consider, but despite what Bones thought of her ability to interact with the child, she had an excellent relationship with Parker. And Parker adored Bones. It would be a seamless transition to include her in their lives.

Finding a way to tell her this was going to be the hard part.

He was pleasantly surprised, upon exiting the shower, to find her sitting at the table. She turned briefly at his approach. "There's food in the bags." Motioning toward the takeout, she studied him briefly. "I already ate," she informed him, turning away again.

It wasn't unusual for him to be in her apartment first thing in the morning. Late nights working on paperwork together were normal for the two of them. This morning, there was more meaning to it and Brennan wasn't sure what to think.

"Too hungry to wait for me?" he joked, coming up toward her. When she pressed her lips together and didn't respond, he sighed and joined her at the table.

"Eat," he ordered, shoving one of the bags toward her. "I know you didn't. So don't lie to me and pretend that you did."

To appease him, or prevent the argument, she took her purchase from the bag and placed it in front of her. Booth was halfway through his sandwich when he realized she still hadn't touched hers.

"If I leave, will you eat?" If she refused to even eat in his presence, any hope of making this work was a fool's dream.

She looked up from the notepad she'd been making notes on. Her blue eyes were confused. "What?" Lost in her thoughts, she'd almost forgotten he was sitting next to her.

Almost. But there was always a part of her now that wouldn't forget. That reminded her over and over again she was married to him.

No, she hadn't eaten. Her stomach was too tied up in knots to think about adding food to the mix. Looking at him, she realized, as usual, he was looking at her first. The smile was small, but it was there.

Booth had no idea why she'd smiled and managed to give her one in return. But it didn't last. "What is this anyway?" he asked, reaching for the notes in front of her.

Pulling it out of his grasp, she gave him a pleading look. "It's mine. Leave it, Booth." But she did put it aside and pick up the muffin.

Neither spoke, eating in a silence that was unfamiliar. Frustrated with himself and Bones and the entire situation, Booth shoved the remainder of his food away in disgust. "We can't do this. I can't do this," he muttered at the end. "Not this way."

Brennan agreed with the sentiment. There was no way she could be married, either. Still, there was a twinge in her stomach at the thought he saw her that way. As someone not worthy to be married to. "The divorce shouldn't take longer than six weeks," Brennan offered. "Then we can go back to the way things were." Except she wasn't sure they could.

"It won't be the same, Bones. Six weeks is a lifetime. We just sat at the same table and didn't speak to each other. Do you really think no one will notice things are different between us? They are always going to be different between us now."

"So what are we supposed to do?" she asked. Booth would get them through this. More of the faith Hodgins accused her of having. "I'm doing the best I can, Booth. But," she shook her head. "I don't know what it means to be married. I don't know of any way forward but a divorce."

"I don't want the divorce," Booth blurted out. The words fell like stones and her cringe was visible.

Well, that hadn't been part of his hastily formed plan. Way to ease her into the idea. Hell, he hadn't been one hundred percent sure until the words came out of his mouth.

Maybe he wasn't husband material after all. He knew Bones wouldn't react well to a statement like that. Was it a bad sign he hadn't taken her feelings into account?

Brennan looked at him, her mouth open in horror. Well, he wasn't wrong on her reaction. "You want us to stay married?" she asked, sure she'd misunderstood. "You can't be serious." She hadn't really considered he might actually want that. Maybe, for a brief minute or two. But it was a ridiculous idea. Hadn't that been her thought on the plane? How could she be so wrong?

"Just listen a second, okay?" Booth reached out to grab her hands but she snatched them away. "I think we could make this work."

She stared at him, barely blinking. "We can't make this work, Booth. We can't stay married. Do you even love me? Or is this some religious thing because a divorce will get you in trouble with your God?"

"I'm not avoiding the divorce because of religion, Bones. But yeah," he said, pulling his hands back to rest them in his lap. "I think I'm in love with you."

"Think?" Her voice was wild. "You think you're in love with me? What does that even mean?"

"Fine. I was trying to be gentle. I'm sorry if that scares you. Yes, I'm in love with you." Wow, the romance was high in this relationship. First a wedding he couldn't remember and now a declaration of love met with terror and disbelief.

But he wasn't taking any of it back.

He could see the retreat in her eyes, as if she'd risen from the table. "You're just reacting to the situation we found ourselves in. The stress of Hodgins and I being kidnapped. It led to a combination of adrenalin and-"

"Don't," he said, stopping her desperate flow of words. "Don't try to diminish my feelings into something scientific. You asked the question, I gave the answer. Sorry it wasn't the one you wanted to hear."

This time she did rise and step away from him. "So, now what? You just move in here or I move in with you and we start living like we're married? Sleeping in the same bed? Having sex? Is that what you see?"

He would have liked all of those things. But he shook his head. "Of course not, Bones. I thought we could start with a date. Go slow."

"A date?" she spit out. "I don't want a date. I want the divorce. That list you wanted to take from me, was me organizing my thoughts for when I called my lawyer again. Which I am still doing."

Refusing to look at her, he rose to clean the table. "We are friends, Bones," he said. Bags were crumbled into balls and left over food put into piles. It was all going in the garbage, but it gave him something to do. "Best friends," he continued. "You know more about me than I have ever shared with another living soul, including my grandfather. I would die for you," he admitted, shifting his eyes toward her then away again. "I thought…, I guess I hoped, that your feelings for me were similar."

She took a deep breath and counted to ten. "You know that I consider you a friend. My feelings? I don't always know what they are. But you think that means we should stay married?" Her voice had lost the fire as she tried to understand what he was saying. Gripping the back of the chair, Brennan fought to find solid ground. "Is that what a marriage is built on?"

Booth shrugged. "Don't know. Never been married until now. But I know it's more than some people will ever have. I thought you might be brave enough to find out."

She didn't like having her courage questioned. "Emotions, feelings, don't make sense to me. I hurt people without even trying. I am going to hurt you, Booth. I'm hurting you right now."

"I'm not a child, Bones. I know this won't be easy. We are both independent stubborn people and I have a child. We are going to hurt each other. But marriage is just a series of promises. To love, honor, protect and be true. We already have the honor and protect part. We won't cheat. And love?" He shrugged. "I'm already there. And if it doesn't happen for you, we'll deal with that too."

"I won't do this, Booth," she said. "I can't love you. I don't know how." She swiped at her cheeks, startled to realize she was crying. "We are friends. That's what we are. Friends." Except she was going to lose him. Unless she agreed to this crazy plan. No matter what choice she made, at some point Brennan knew she'd break his heart. Was it better to do it now? She didn't know.

He nodded. There was no point in arguing with her. She would fall back into the science that kept her safe. "Just think about it, okay? Call the lawyers and do what you need to do. All I'm asking, right this second, is that you think about giving this a chance."

Finishing his work at the table, Booth finally looked at her directly. "I'm going to get my bag and head home. If we get a case, I'll see you at the scene. Let me know what you decide."

She watched him, blue eyes stormy with emotion, as he walked from the room and returned with his bag.

Expecting him to walk away, she was surprised when he stopped an arm's length from her. "I know I've scared you, Bones. And I'm sorry for that. But you won't lose yourself being married to me. You'll still be who you've always been. I won't try to change you. I already fell in love with you. I don't want anything but who you already are." Running a hand down her arm, he took her hand and squeezed it. "Think about it."

"This is going to change everything," she whispered.

His reply was simple. "It already has."


	7. Chapter 7

_A/N: Thank you for all the followers, favorites and reviews. I'm glad everyone is enjoying this story. I'm having a lot of fun writing it._

_A slightly earlier update because I've tweaked this chapter too much and I need to move on. _

_This chapter is a little (a lot) longer. I'd apologize, but I'm hoping no one is actually going to be upset by that. Some details from their first case may be slightly altered _

"You okay, Brennan?" Angela asked. Camera in hand, she stood next to Brennan on the platform, waiting to take more pictures.

"Fine," Brennan said. She continued to catalog injuries on the victim, not looking up. "Why do you ask?"

She hadn't spoken to Booth in two days. They hadn't met for lunch or exchanged the random emails and texts she'd come to look forward to. She feared he was waiting for an answer she didn't know how to give.

It bothered her that he appeared to be pulling away from her. Forcing her to see what her life would be like without him in it.

Not knowing the next step, in a life she'd planned out meticulously for years, was terrifying. She hadn't been this lost since her teenage years.

Could she love him? Was there a chance she did already? More confused than she'd even felt, Brennan wasn't sure how to untangle herself.

Considering her friend, Angela looked off to her left, where Booth stood talking to Cam. "Do you see Booth over there?" she asked.

Brennan nodded. "I know he's there, Angela," she answered. She always seemed to know when he was near, both before and now especially after this marriage. But she didn't look up to check. "He arrived not long after this body. You know, the cold case he mentioned." But he hadn't come to talk to her. Instead, he'd gone to find Cam.

Brennan wondered if he'd found something to work on just to have an excuse to come see her at the Jeffersonian.

She tried to ignore the excited flutter in her stomach at the thought of Booth wanting to see her that badly. Brennan feared that it was already too late. That there was no way to untangle her life from his, even if she wanted to.

And that was the question, wasn't it? Did she want to?

"I need you to look at him, Brennan."

Keeping her face carefully neutral, Brennan looked over and then back again. "He looks like he usually does. Standard FBI uniform he always wears. Crazy tie and socks if previous clothing is used as evidence."

Which bothered her. She could feel the tension in her shoulders and it was hard to hide the circles beneath her eyes. She hadn't slept more than a couple of hours at a time in the last several nights. If it wasn't nightmares, it was thoughts of Booth swirling in her head.

He looked like he wasn't bothered at all. How could he possibly love her? She was twisted in knots. Wouldn't he feel the same if he felt what he claimed?

Brennan wanted him to look at her. To see what this marriage and his demand that they not divorce was doing to her.

It was making her long for things she'd never thought of getting. Of nights not spent alone and mornings with someone to eat breakfast with. Knowing Booth was worried about her, or thinking of her, even when he didn't need to.

Angela sighed and snapped several pictures before straightening again. "You've really never noticed, have you?"

"Noticed what?" she asked. She thought she'd noticed everything about Booth. The way his eyes lit up when he talked about his son. How he liked his coffee in the morning. That when he teased her it was a sign of affection and not another person being cruel to her. Booth had taught her there was a difference.

She was ignoring other things. The way his entire face lit up when he saw her. The way he always put his hand at the small of her back when she walked in front of him. How there was always warm food waiting for her before she even knew she was hungry.

"Booth watches you, Bren. Not in a creepy, stalker sort of way, but when you two are together, he always knows where you are. He stands so he can see you. Even when he's talking to other techs or the local cops, he never stands with his back to you."

Stunned, Brennan straightened and stared at Angela. "I don't think that can be true. It's not practical."

"Oh, it's true. He never stands so he can't see you. But today, his back is to you. He hasn't turned once to make sure you haven't left the platform. Something is up between the two of you."

"Angela." Brennan said her name with just a touch of impatience. She'd been afraid this would happen; Booth had warned her it would. So she'd spent some of her sleepless nights coming up with stories that might explain any unusual behavior.

"Hodgins and I were buried alive less than a week ago. We, as I'm sure you two are, are still tired and attempting to recover. I'm sure the stress of that event has something to do with Booth's unusual behavior."

Her friend's eyes softened. "Yeah," she agreed. "Hodgins is still having trouble sleeping. I have to be careful not to leave him alone after dark."

Brennan had only turned her lights off in the apartment one time since they'd escaped the car. It was when she and Booth had shared a bed.

They'd done nothing but touch hands and sleep. Yet to Brennan, it had felt more intimate than some of the relationships she'd had. It was part of the reason she'd risen early and left her own home. There'd been no time to think about everything that had happened and it didn't take much before she was overwhelmed.

Booth had overwhelmed her, making declarations she didn't understand. No one had ever considered her for a long term relationship, much less a marriage. What did he see in her that she didn't?

"Hodgins will be okay, Angela," Brennan reassured her. It was hard and getting harder, to turn her thoughts away from Booth and what he'd asked of her. But she needed to focus on Angela or she'd give away the secret she carefully carried. "And Booth and I are too." She threw a glance over her shoulder. "See, he's adjusted himself so he's facing this direction now."

Angela narrowed her eyes. "Yes, he has," she agreed. Even if she was sure something else was going on.

"Bones? You got a sec?" Booth called up. He'd seen the glances directed his way and knew the two women were discussing him.

"Yes, Booth." Brennan pulled off the plastic gloves. "See if you can confirm identification," she said to Angela. "We can continue after lunch."

Without waiting for a response, she descended the stairs and headed toward her office.

She didn't have an answer for him. Had tied herself in knots trying to decide what to do about their marriage. His crack about her lack of courage still bothered her. Was she really afraid to take a chance?

But the chance he was asking for was nothing but chemicals. A life built on things that faded over time. All of the scientific journals said so. But her journals hadn't been able to explain how some marriages made it for twenty or thirty years. Some a lot longer than that. Were the chemicals just what got things going and the rest up to the people involved?

And if that was the truth, was she made of that? Would Booth still be happy with her years from now?

Booth closed the door behind her. But when he opened his mouth to speak, she help up her hand.

"If you tell me we need to talk, I might scream."

Chuckling, he sat down on the couch she kept in her office. "Do we? Need to talk?" he asked.

Booth had no intention of pushing. He was in love with her, that was certain. Because he loved her he accepted that her brain sometimes needed time to think things through before she could move forward.

She looked tired. He saw all the signs she'd so carefully tried to hide. He hoped his wish to stay married was keeping her up at night. It meant she was at least considering it.

He wanted her to stay with him. Or at least give this a chance. But until she made her decision one way or the other, he couldn't plan his next move in the battle for her heart.

What he planned to do was support her in all the ways he typically did. To remind her without words that her life was better because he was in it.

Because he was so much better with her beside him. And he didn't want that to change.

She gave him a disbelieving look. "I called a lawyer," she said. "I have an appointment."

His stomach clenched, but he nodded calmly. "I told you to go ahead and do that." Adjusting his tie, he looked down at his lap. He wouldn't push, he reminded himself. But he was afraid of what she'd see in his eyes.

Remaining standing, Brennan looked down at him. At the man who'd held her hand while she slept. Who'd helped her when her entire identity and life was pulled from beneath her feet.

And knew there was only one path forward. "I'm free tonight," she said. "Unless something breaks with the case." Who was she kidding? She was free every night. "And is this really a case that needs such urgent attention? Or did you make something up to come see me?"

He widened his eyes and gave her an innocent look that fooled neither of them. "Do you like the idea that I'd make up a reason to come see you?" Booth asked.

Yes, she wanted to say. Yes, I want you to come see me. To not walk away from me. Because Brennan was sure that no matter what she did, she was going to lose him. He'd figure out they weren't suited to be married and agree with her demand for a divorce. Something she knew their friendship would not survive. But she also knew that their friendship wasn't going to survive if she didn't try.

Shuffling her feet, she didn't answer his question. "I don't think this is going to work, Booth. I don't think I'm capable of being what you think I should be."

He came to his feet and shoved his hands into his pockets to stop his reach for her. The blinds were open and taking her hands would lead to too many questions. "I think you should be you, Bones. I love you, not some image of a person you think you should be."

She waved her hand at him. "Don't say that to me again," she ordered. "I can't think, can't reconcile any of this is my head. Your declarations just make it harder."

He nodded but made no promise. "I'll try to wait until you say it to me."

Her eyes were sad as they met his. "That day probably won't come, Booth."

Booth refused to believe that. "Then why did you tell me you were free tonight?"

"You asked me for a date. Yet I fail to understand how tonight will be different as we've gone out to dinner many times before."

His heart beat faster with sudden hope, sure she'd been about to turn down his request to give them a chance. "We'll leave the city. At least the part we usually visit. Find someplace where no one will know us. I promise it will be different, Bones."

The weak smile she gave him wasn't happy. "It's already different, Booth. Angela said you weren't watching me. She said you were acting differently."

"I wasn't watching you do what?" he asked, pulling a hand from his pocket to rub the back of his neck. Bones was hard to keep up with sometimes.

"Watching me work. She says you always stand so you can see me. But today, when you were talking to Cam, you didn't."

Leave it to Angela to notice something like that. "She's right. I usually do."

Brennan tilted her head. "Why?" There was genuine curiosity in her voice.

Booth shrugged. "In the beginning it was because I was afraid you were going to do something crazy. And let's face it, I wasn't wrong."

A fleeting smile appeared on her face as she waited for his explanation. "And now?"

His eyes were serious on hers. "I am your gun and your shield, Bones. The one whose job it is to stand between you and whatever harm might come our way. In order to do that, in order to do a job I take very seriously, I need to know where you are at all times. So I stand where I can see you. Even if sometimes you don't listen and try to run in front of me."

"I don't want you to get hurt for me, Booth." She was angry that he'd ever consider sacrificing his life for hers. "We are partners. I can take care of myself."

"Of course you can," he agreed easily. "And you're taken care of even better when I'm there. That's why I stand where I can see you."

She shook her head. "I don't like that answer." But he did take care of her. Brennan just didn't want him risking his life to do it.

"Then don't ask the questions," he said. "In case you haven't noticed, or haven't been paying attention, I want this, Bones. I'm not going to lie to you to get what I want. So if you don't want the answers, don't ask the questions. You aren't going to get to say that you didn't know what you were getting into."

Brennan wanted to take a step back. To protect herself from a man she never thought of as dangerous, at least not to her. Now she was starting to realize he was dangerous in ways she'd never imagined.

"You won't lie?" she asked him.

He shook his head. "Is there something you want to know?"

"Lots of things," she admitted before shrugging.

"Ask me one," he encouraged. "You don't have to go for the intense stuff. Don't be a chicken, Bones," he teased. "Take a chance."

"I already am," she mumbled, and decided to take another. "Do you want me, Booth? You had a chance, several years ago. Had a chance but changed the rules so that chance went away. If you didn't want me then, why do you want me now?"

If his desire for her had disappeared so quickly during that first case, what would prevent the same thing from happening again?

Is was so far outside what he expected that Booth blinked several times in shock. He glanced behind her, relieved to see they'd closed the door to her office when they'd entered. "Do I want you?" he asked. His voice had dropped to a harsh whisper as he repeated the question back to her. "What do you think happened that night? I still wanted you when I put you in the back of that cab. But you said you wouldn't be with me because you were drunk." He snorted. "Maybe we shouldn't drink together anymore."

Brennan pressed her lips together, wondering what she'd been thinking. "I wasn't drunk the next day. Neither were you. But you hired me back so there was no chance we could pursue a relationship. Evidence showed you sobered up and changed your mind." She shook her head. It hadn't been where she'd intended this conversation to go.

"Never mind," she said quickly. Trying to move past him, Booth shot his arm out to stop her. She looked down at it and back up. His eyes had turned dark and intense. "I didn't mean to make you angry or uncomfortable," she apologized.

"I'm neither," he said. "I'm just trying to understand what you've been thinking, Bones." His hand rubbed the back of his neck.

"I'm afraid," she said softly. "Of saying yes and still losing everything. Of not being able to figure out what you see in me that makes you think this will work. I'm still the same person I was then, Booth. What makes now different? We were drinking this time too."

Her confession and the honesty beneath it startled him. It was more self-aware than Bones usually was about her feelings.

"Okay. I think you misunderstand what happened that night. We'll get to that in a second. But as for the question of wanting you, do you think that I don't? And I'm assuming we're talking about sex." His voice returned to a whisper so low, Brennan barely heard the last word.

Nodding, Brennan felt a bubble of panic try to rise in her chest. She hadn't given the question much thought before it came out of her mouth and she'd assumed the answer would be an easy yes. If he wanted to stay married to her, he had to want everything that came with it.

His eyes drifted down to her feet and back up again with a look that made her skin tingle. "I have wanted you from the first moment I saw you," he admitted. "When I kissed you outside during that first case. When I rehired you to save you from me, not because I didn't want you. I wanted you too damn much. The year you refused to talk to me when I couldn't quite get you out of my thoughts. When I wake up in the morning and fall asleep at night," he continued, holding up his hand to stop her questions. "Yes, I want you. Did you really think the answer would be no?"

"You rehired me so you didn't have to sleep with me," she corrected. "And I needed to hear you say it," she added quietly at the end. "I just needed to hear it."

He shifted, breaking the intensity of the moment. "I figured that's what you thought, what I let you think, because it was easier for me. And I was pretty sure you weren't interested in me that way, not anymore. So I let you continue to think it. Easier to hide the truth if only one of us knows it."

"Then what is the truth?"

He looked past her, to make sure no one was walking past the glass that made up the outside wall of her office. "You really need shades," he mumbled. But he took a chance, reaching out to brush his knuckles down her cheek. "The truth is that I want you with every breath. I'm not doing anything to keep that from happening this time."

Brennan stepped back from his touch. "So why did I need saving from you?" she asked.

He shoved his hand back in his pocket, knowing she made the right move to step away. This was too fragile for anyone other than the two of them to know what was going on. "I wasn't good enough for you. I was a gambler who was going to lose control of his life. Probably already had. I lied when I said I was taking care of it. Denial was pretty strong until that night. If something didn't change, I would probably have lost my job. And you were the future I could have if I got it together. Maybe not as a couple, even if I wanted that. But you were the best in your field, still are. I wanted to be with the best."

"So you rehired me?"

"It was the best away to avoid a path I wasn't ready to walk."

"And did you get it together? Are you ready to walk it now, to use your creative terminology? "

"You tell me?" he challenged. "Did I get it together enough for you to give us a chance, to give me a chance? Or a second chance, if that's how you want to see it."

Booth was pushing her and he knew it. And not five minutes after he told himself he wouldn't. But one simple question about his desire for her had given him hope. Hope that Bones saw him as more than just a friend.

"Pick me up at six, Booth. I'll be ready."

"Does that mean your answer is you're willing to try?" he asked again.

"Pick me up at six," she repeated, opening the door to leave her office, "and we'll go from there."


	8. Chapter 8

Brennan refused to worry about what to wear. That gave weight to what this evening was. She still didn't think it would matter in the end. Booth would leave. She wasn't sure how to trust anyone not to do that to her.

But he kept coming back. No matter what she said, or how she said it, he kept being patient with her. Maybe it was time to start letting go of the past. She wasn't sure she knew how to be married. But if he really didn't leave her, Brennan thought she might be able to figure it out.

The black dress fell to her ankles and while it covered her shoulders, it did reveal a portion of her back. Brennan liked how it swirled around her feet when she walked.

And danced. But Booth hadn't been specific about where they were going so she wasn't sure there would be an opportunity for that. Still, the idea that Booth might have his hand against the skin bared by her dress was something to anticipate.

Her hair was loose around her face. She tried, but the makeup still couldn't quite hide the circles beneath her eyes. Each night she hoped for more sleep and fewer nightmares.

All she had to do was ask Booth to stay. She knew his presence in the apartment would be enough to help her feel safe. It seemed wrong to rely on him for the help when every interaction between them carried more meaning. Would he read something into it if she asked him to stay? And was there more meaning if she did?

Brennan saw the hope in his eyes. He hadn't been able to completely hide that from her. But the love was something he was keeping carefully buried. Not that she was sure she'd recognize it even if it was there. She hadn't seen any man look at her with love in their eyes. So maybe it was there and she just couldn't see it.

She was pulling on heels when there was a knock at the door. He had a key. Why didn't he just open the door? Did a date mean he had to be more formal?

The look on her face when she opened the door had him forgetting about the flowers and stepping toward her. "Bones, what's wrong?"

"Why couldn't you let yourself in? Why is everything so different now?" There were more nerves than anger in the tone. Her heels clicked as she walked away from him.

Intrigued by the skin revealed by the dress, Booth shook his head and tried to focus. "I don't usually let myself in," he pointed out, following her inside. "I usually knock, unless you ignore me." Every light in the main area was blazing. A quick glance toward the back told him the rest were on as well.

"You know," he said, keeping his voice casual, "for someone who is so environmentally conscious, you sure do have a lot of lights on."

She whirled toward him. Her balance was impressive for someone on heels, he thought. She bit her lip, then deliberately reached next to her to turn the lamp off. "Better?"

He came toward her, the daffodils he'd brought in front of him. "You know all you had to do was ask," he said gently. "Why do you always insist on fighting your battles alone?"

"Because I've always been alone." There was no sadness in her tone at that. To her, it was just a fact of her life. Taking the flowers, she couldn't stop herself from breathing in their scent. "They're pretty, thank you," she said softly. Shaking her head, she brushed past him, going to a find a vase.

Such a contrast between the man who'd kill to protect her, yet managed to remember what her favorite flower was.

He turned and crossed his arms over his chest, leaning against the back of her couch. "Whatever this is, Bones, whatever this is going to be, shouldn't keep you from asking me for help."

"What this is, is currently a disaster," she mumbled. Then sighed. "That's not accurate. I don't know what this is." The flowers went on a counter and she fidgeted with them to avoid looking at him. "It's just a couple of nightmares. They aren't the first I've had. I'll be okay."

Finally, though he recognized a sheer act of will when he saw it, she looked at him. "I hurt you," she said, reading the emotion on his face, in his eyes. If she'd asked for help, it would have been risking too much. Taught her to rely on him when she needed to remember to take care of herself. But by not asking, she'd already done the one thing she feared she would. "I told you I would."

"It's not hurt," he disagreed. Heading toward the door, Booth held out his hand for hers. She looked at it, then him, before taking it. The squeeze he gave was meant to reassure her. "It's more worry than anything, Bones. You aren't sleeping. That's not good for you."

"You promised honesty, Booth," she said. Her purse was by the door and she grabbed it on her way out. "I hurt you by not asking."

"Okay, you did," he admitted, leading her toward the SUV. Knowing it would set her on edge, he opened the door for her. He was careful to keep the humor out of his eyes when she glared at him, then climbed gracefully into the vehicle. Only when she was safely inside, did he hurry around the back to climb in. "But this is still worry, Bones," he continued as if there hadn't been a pause in the conversation. "Are you getting any sleep?"

"Is this how it is to be married?" she wondered. "The endless questions and the pushing when someone doesn't want to talk?"

Booth took a deep breath and forced himself to relax. He was afraid of pushing too hard. But not pushing at all wasn't an option either. They couldn't stay frozen in place this time. "Yes. At least, that's how it will be for us, Bones. It would matter to me even if we weren't married. You matter to me. Are you sleeping?" he demanded.

Booth could feel those blue eyes staring at him, but he kept his own attention on the road. Finally, she looked away from him. "Some." She bit her lip and continued to stare at the passing scenery. "I can't turn the lights off," she admitted. "It's too much like being in the car. Then and now," she added at the end. She motioned with her hand. "The nightmares are starting to jumble together with my past."

"What part of your past?" he asked. Booth knew there were things about her childhood she hadn't shared. Comments dropped here and there that indicated her time in foster care had been everything but loving.

"Where are you taking us?" she asked. Brennan had no desire to talk about a past she was trying to leave behind. It annoyed her that she couldn't control the memories when she was asleep and her defenses were low.

He let her change the topic, but filed away what she'd said to ask about later. "We," he said, smiling in her direction, "are going to a jazz place I know. Far enough out that we won't have to worry about being seen."

The smile she gave him was warm. "You remember I like jazz."

Kind of surprised he looked over at her. "Of course. I remember everything you like Bones. What would be the point of this if I didn't?"

"Favorite flower?" she challenged him.

"I think I brought them to your apartment tonight."

"Too easy," she said. "Favorite food?"

"The french fries off my plate," he joked. "You are wasting your time, Bones."

Their easy banter filled the vehicle until he pulled into a parking space outside the club. "The music starts a little later. But I reserved us a table so we can eat first."

Brennan watched him with a stare that unnerved most people. Thankful he was no longer driving, Booth met it easily and waited her out.

Once, her ability to look at him like he was under a microscope had made him uncomfortable. Now, he just accepted there was something she was working out in her head. Probably about him, "Something you want to say?" he asked as she blinked and released her seatbelt.

She shook her head, leaving Booth to wonder what she'd been looking for. And if she'd found it.

"Seeley Booth!" the hostess greeted, coming forward to grasp both of his hands in hers. Booth gave her a smile before bending over to kiss her cheek.

"Hello, Cat. How are you?" He turned toward Brennan. "This is a friend of mine, Catherine," he introduced. "She has a son in Parker's class."

Brennan watched the two of them, envious of the way they were so affectionate with each other. She wanted that, she was startled to realize. The ability to just walk up to someone and make it seem so natural.

No. Not just anyone. She wanted that with Booth. And she could have it too. It was up to her.

Booth caught her staring again and lifted one eyebrow in a silent question. But she shook her head subtly and looked away again.

"Good thing too," Cat joked, leaning close to Booth. "It's hard to get a reservation in this place. Especially with the type of table he requested. And our most popular jazz musician is here tonight."

Catherine eyed Brennan up and down, making no secret of the fact. Brennan stood and waited impatiently. "If you're done, perhaps you could take us to our table."

The laugh rang out. "I like her, Seeley. Come on. I have the perfect spot for you."

Booth looked toward Brennan surprised to see what looked like barely contained anger on her face. "She doesn't mean anything by it, Bones," he bent to whisper in her ear. "It's just who she is."

"I'm not jealous of her," Brennan hissed, afraid that he might think she was. There was no way she'd feel an emotion as petty as jealousy.

Booth waited until they were seated across from each other at the table before giving her a look she recognized.

"I'm not," she insisted, using the menu to hide her face. Booth reached out and pushed it down so he could see her eyes. "Not of her. Of the way you two were together. Natural. Affectionate. Something I'm not."

"I want you," he said. "Quit worrying about what you aren't and start thinking about what you are. I'm thinking steak." He gave her a smile then went back to his study of the menu.

She tried to focus on the menu until the waitress returned with their drink order. Brennan had never thought about it that way. What did she have?

Looks. She was confident in how she looked. And intelligence, that went without saying. Was it enough to keep a man like Seeley Booth interested in her for the rest of their lifetimes?

"Quit thinking so hard and decide on dinner. They have several vegetarian dishes. I made sure to check before we came."

Of course, he did. Booth wouldn't have wasted time taking her to a place she wouldn't enjoy.

"I know what I want," she said. Closing the menu she placed it back on the table. "Have you been here before? And what are we doing?"

"How fast is your brain working right now?" he asked rhetorically. "Once or twice. I like the music and that it's a little ways out from the city. Sometimes I just need to step away. But never to eat. I usually stay over in the lounge portion." Answering the first question, he leaned back to consider the second. "What I'm doing is taking my wife to what I hope will be an enjoyable evening." He gave her a friendly smile and was surprised when she laughed.

"Your charm smile shouldn't work on me." Brennan knew she should have argued against the comment about her being his wife. But if you went with facts, he hadn't lied. They were married. "I like it." She looked around the room, at the tables in dark corners where privacy was desired. At their own table, tucked away so Brennan could almost pretend they were the only ones there. "Thanks for making sure that while it's private, it's not in the darkest corner."

He put his hand face up on the table and after hesitating, she put hers in his. He squeezed, but didn't let go. "Nightmares?"

"Plenty of them." Staring down at their joined hands, she didn't pull away when Booth started running his thumb along her skin. "I don't think you know what you are asking for."

Booth disagreed. "I know exactly what I'm asking for. You aren't the only one with issues, Bones."

Perhaps, she thought. But those the nightmares now included parts of her past. Parts that she'd never shared with anyone. If she'd asked, if she allowed him to stay, he would want to know everything. And Brennan wasn't sure she could give him that.

"Hey," he said, shaking her hand gently. "Where did you go?" There was something there. Booth could see it weighing on her. "You can tell me whatever it is. I don't judge."

Her brow furrowed. "I didn't go anywhere, Booth. I'm right here." She shook her head. "Too literal?" she guessed.

"Yeah, but that's okay. I like explaining things to you." Booth studied her. "I know there's something going on, Bones. I'll let you keep changing the subject and ignoring the questions, but don't think I'm not noticing."

Pressing her lips together, the warning in her eyes was clear. Booth waited to see if he'd ruined the evening before it began when she blew out a shaky breath.

"I remind myself not to push you," he said. "To give you space to make your own choices, find whatever it is you need. But you are too terrified to turn off the lights in your apartment. And too stubborn to ask for the help you need. So I'm stuck in a tough spot. Do I keep pushing, knowing I might piss you off enough to walk away? Or do I say nothing at all and risk you thinking that I don't notice or care?"

Booth was surprised into silence when she met his eyes. "You push," she said quietly. Breaking the eye contact, she licked her lips. "But what happens when you get tired of that and we can't make this work." She made it more of a statement than a question. There was a weariness in her voice that worried him. "When you realize that I was right and what we are trying to do is not logical?"

He hadn't expected her to answer or give him permission to keep asking the questions. This date was more eye opening than he'd expected it to be.

"First, Bones," he said, "you can't predict the future. You don't know that we can't make this work."

He released her hand and leaned back to let the waitress place the food in front of them. "And if you decide to try and make this work, you can't assume it's going to fail. That's giving up before we start."

"I can't handle losing you," she said, staring down at the food. Her voice was so low he strained to hear it over the noise in the restaurant. "We were friends, we aren't lovers, but now we're married. That's not how plans go. Not how any plans I've ever made go."

Placing his fork down, he reached out to lift her chin up. Booth wanted to see her eyes. To force her to look into his and see the truth there. "You're right. We didn't plan this. Doesn't mean we can't adjust and make this work. For tonight, we are just two people on a date, listening to what I hope will be great music. Let's just start there."

She could do that. Focus single-mindedly on this moment and push everything else away. Enjoy every second she spent with him because no matter what he said, Brennan was sure this wasn't going to last. "Okay," she agreed. "I'll just focus on this."

If the conversation during dinner was slightly awkward, neither of them made mention of it. Brennan did her part to keep up her end of the bargain. Each time doubts teased at the edge of her consciousness, she pushed them aside.

After finishing their meal, Booth led them from the restaurant toward the lounge. He ordered drinks for each of them before settling into a booth next to her. "Let's stop at one tonight, okay? Of course, I'm not sure what else could happen at this point if we drank too much."

"Death. Dismemberment." Her voice was serious as she took a sip of her drink.

Booth paused with his halfway to his lips. "I'll switch to water," he decided, motioning toward a waitress.

She laughed and leaned back next to him. "No dance floor here," she pointed out, ignoring the shiver of disappointment at the thought of him not getting to hold her close.

It felt like the seesaw she used to play on with Russ as a child. One minute she tilted toward staying with Booth and the next she was sure they could never make this work. No wonder she never felt like she was on solid ground anymore.

"Would you like to go dancing?" he asked.

"I don't dance. It's more like swaying back and forth," she admitted.

"Maybe," Booth said, "you haven't had the right teacher." His voice lowered. "Because looking at the way you move, I have a hard time believing you can't dance."

Brennan met his eyes and inhaled at what she saw there. Hunger. But he blinked and it disappeared, making her wonder if she'd seen it all.

When the music started, it was harder to think with it flowing through her head. So she stopped. And when Booth moved to sit next to her, putting an arm behind her shoulders, she let herself lean into him.

"Do you like the music?" he asked. His mouth was bent close to her, his breath tickling her ear. Brennan knew all she had to do was turn her head and the conversation would turn into something else entirely.

Instead, she reached forward to grab what remained of her drink. The move put a little more space between them. Brennan immediately missed the warmth of his body next to hers.

Booth shrugged it off studying her profile. He could see she was enjoying the evening, but still recognized the turmoil beneath. Wondering what it would take for her to admit that she wanted this, wanted him, he pulled her back to him.

Brennan let him. There was strength there, the kind that could get her through the nights if she let him stay. Strength that didn't give up on her no matter how difficult she made it.

The ride back to her place was quiet, each lost in thought. Booth hoping she had the courage to stay with him and Brennan wondering where to find it.

"Thanks for dinner," she said when they stood outside the door to her apartment. Booth had escorted her up, despite her insistence that she was fine. Along the way, he'd run his fingers along the bare skin of her back. And though she was sure it was a bad idea to let him get so close, Brennan didn't stop him.

"Give me your key," Booth demanded, waiting with his hand outstretched. Knowing it wasn't a battle worth fighting, Brennan placed it in his open palm.

Opening the door, Booth went in first and looked around the apartment to make sure everything was as they'd left it. And froze when her voice came from behind him.

"Just stay, Booth." Her voice was resigned. Booth didn't like the tone. She sounded as if she was giving up on something and he hoped it wasn't him. "It's late. Stay in the guest room. I'll make sure you're up in time to get back home before work."

He turned toward her. His eyes were as dark as the night outside. "You're sure?"

She laughed, the sound filled with a nervous panic she didn't try to hide. "Of course I'm not sure. I'm not sure about anything with you. But I've said it. Don't try to get me to change my mind."

As if there was any chance of that.

Kicking off her heels, she carried them in her hand as she walked past him. His hand on her arm forced her to stop. "If you need me," he offered.

"I'm not ready to share yet, Booth. But I know where to find you." She sighed. Then, in a move he never saw coming, she leaned up to brush her lips against his cheek. "Thanks, Booth. I had a nice time."

Watching her walk away, Booth knew the night had made an impression. He could only hope it was a good one. He thought it had gone well considering the circumstances.

It couldn't even be classified as a kiss, not really, but his cheek still tingled from the contact. She was such a contradiction, inching forward then pulling away. Was the kiss an invitation for more or a last chance to touch him that way? Would she even be here when he woke in the morning?

Booth half expected her to wait until he was asleep and take off to the Lab. He knew she liked to think there, but it bothered him when she went alone.

He cursed her parents and brother for what they'd done to her. Bones would be more trusting of him and everything offered if her own family hadn't done so much damage.

The choice they'd made would never make sense to him. He'd walk through fire to get to that woman. There were moments he felt like he was doing that now.

Running both hands through his hair, he headed toward the spare bedroom. He noted Brennan's lights were off as he passed her room. It appeared she did trust him, at least to keep her safe. He decided it was a step in the right direction.


	9. Chapter 9

_Be patient. We aren't quite there __yet. It's coming, I promise._

_OoOoOo_

"Damnit, Temperance, wake up," Booth demanded. He hated to touch her, fearing the sensation would further alarm her, but this had gone on long enough.

Far too long. And it might cost him everything in the end, but this refusal to accept his help was ending tonight. He loved her and didn't want her to do this alone. But no matter how much she claimed to trust him, it was still hard for her to let him in.

Booth knew he should have insisted they sleep in the same bed. Maybe being in the room would have prevented this from happening. Too late now.

Carefully, he placed one hand against her shoulder and shook her gently. Whenever his dreams were this violent his skin was clammy, but hers was cool and dry beneath his palm.

"Come on, Bones," he tried again. "Just wake up."

He'd tried to sleep, might have managed an hour or two, before the cries from her room had brought him to his feet. Now, he stared down at her, trying to wake her without making everything worse.

His presence hadn't been enough to keep her nightmares at bay. And Booth was sure that until she decided to let him in, they'd continue to haunt her nightly.

"You're too darn stubborn for your own good. Wake up."

Her head shook back and forth on the pillow. "Get me out of the car," she mumbled. "Don't let them put me in the trunk."

Booth shook his head. It was the second time she'd mumbled something about the trunk of a car. As far as he was aware, neither she nor Hodgins had been trapped there. They'd been in the front portion of the car, not locked in the back. "You aren't in the trunk or the car," he reassured her, trying to pierce whatever nightmare she'd been sucked into. "Just open your eyes."

Her eyes flying open at the command, they met his before she rolled to her side and curled into a ball. "I'm here," she managed to gasp. Impossibly, Booth watched her wrap herself even tighter, arms pulling her bent legs to her chest.

"So am I," Booth said. "Is this what you've been doing when no one is here?" he whispered. Now that she was at least partially awake, he moved behind her and wrapped himself around her. "You're cold," he said, reaching out to pull a blanket over them.

"Not cold. Hot. Hot in the trunk. Hot in the car. Not enough air to breath and I got so hot." She kicked the blanket back off of them but didn't pull away from the warmth of his body.

He mumbled soothing words alarmed to feel how she shook in his arms. "Bones," Booth said carefully, "I didn't think you and Hodgins were in the trunk of the car." He wanted to help talk her through this, but wasn't entirely sure she had been dreaming about her kidnapping. They'd dug the car from the gravel pit and he'd stood by while members of his team took it apart. He'd seen the tire they punctured in a desperate bid to get more air and the bomb they'd rigged using the airbag.

The kind of courage it took to blow off a bomb in an enclosed space then dig your way to the surface was beyond his measure. If only she could find that same strength when it came to him.

His fingers pulled the hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. The touch was soothing as he rubbed her arms, letting her know without words that he was right there with her.

The silence went on. "I know you don't want to share this, Bones. But you need to talk to someone. If not me, then Angela." But he wanted her to choose him. Tonight. Forever.

Brennan shook her head. "I'm trying, Booth." But the shaking continued. Just this one time, she promised herself, she'd let Booth be the solid ground she stood on. And forced herself to take slow deep breaths.

Relieved to hear a note of defiance in her voice he waited.

Finally, the shuddering stopped enough she felt in control again. "Not with Hodgins. A long time ago." She pushed herself back into him and uncurled slightly so that more of her body was in contact with his. As she calmed, she was able to think clearly. "I don't talk about it. I've never talked about it. I've put that part of my life behind me."

Except she hadn't. It haunted every decision she'd made since her parents had walked out. Her parents left, then Russ left, then every person that was supposed to care for her was a disaster. All of those events precipitated who she'd become. They were a large part of the reason she couldn't accept what the man behind her offered, even when he held her like she mattered.

Booth brushed a hand down her arm. "When did this happen? How long ago?"

She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I'm okay now." A lie, one she couldn't convince herself of, much less Booth.

And he called her on it. As he knew he'd be forced to do when he struggled to wake her. "Not hardly, Bones. You aren't sleeping. And I think you are probably afraid to try. You need to talk about it since silence isn't working so well for you. You think you hide it so well and maybe you do from other people, but I see it. You are troubled by something."

He'd bent so his mouth was close to her ear, making the conversation feel very intimate. Pulling back slightly, he pressed his lips to the top of her head. "I wish that you would choose to let me in."

She pulled away quickly. He feared any resistance on top of what seemed to be a pretty intense nightmare would do damage when she was already so fragile. But there was no part of him that wanted to let go.

Brennan debated with herself as she moved toward the edge of the bed. Booth had released her when she wanted to go, which gave her pause. He always seemed to know exactly what she needed. And, she was tired. Tired of nightmares and memories that were way too close to the surface this week.

Tired of trying to reconcile her very logical brain with her very confused heart.

She sat for minutes at the edge of the bed, feet on the floor and hands next to her on the mattress. There was no sound in the room except for their quiet breathing. The choice was hers, she knew Booth wouldn't push anymore than he already had. Not with this. They'd always known when to stay silent and when to demand more. At least with each other.

"During my teen years," she said. "After my parents left." It was nice not to have to explain all the intricacies. Booth knew enough about her past that he could fill in the details she left out. "I know about nightmare foster families because I lived them."

"They locked you in the trunk of a car?" Booth was putting the pieces together, filling in what she didn't say in words. "For what?" His voice had deepened and she shivered at the menace in the tone.

He heard the tone but the need to protect her was bone deep. Even if the horror had happened long before they met. Booth sat up behind her. "Just come sit next to me, Bones. You aren't alone."

The sound she released was dangerously close to a sob. "I was alone. There wasn't anyone there who cared. Like I said earlier, I've always been alone. No one wants the kid who can't make friends and is more interested in death than in life. Who treats kids that way?" she whispered.

Booth didn't think he needed to answer that one. They both knew what kind of monsters did that to children. He was thankful they now did everything in their power to stop it.

But his heart broke for her and everything she'd suffered through. Kids were often cruel and he knew she'd been tormented.

Reaching out, Booth pulled her gently back until they sat shoulder to shoulder, propped against the wall. "I care," he reminded her. "And I'm here now. I want you," he reminded her. "I want you with all the scars and everything that comes with you. I don't care if you know more about the human body and what death does to it than anyone in the world. It makes you perfect."

Her pale eyes met his. "You fought your own battles. Still do. You don't need to be burdened with mine."

"Being married means I get to help you carry the weight of your burdens, Bones. You do the same for me, even if you don't realize it. Things are…maybe not easier, but different if you share them." He shrugged, unsure how to explain it in a way she understood. "When I tell you things, it helps. I want to do that for you, to trust me enough to know that I can be there for you."

The smile was weak, but it was there. "I think you are making all this up. Do you have a book I could borrow?"

"On marriage? You haven't already read every scientific journal on the topic?" He was sure that's what she was spending every free moment doing. That and looking for all the ways, scientifically they wouldn't work as a couple.

"I thought about it. And I did do some. But I'm not sure a book or scientists could explain this. Explain us." Giving in to the urge, she leaned into him and put her head on his shoulder. "I broke a plate. The water was hot and it slipped from my hands. They locked me in the trunk of the car. It almost killed me." Her voice was detached, attempting to separate herself from one more incident that molded who she'd become.

Freeing his arm, Booth wrapped it around her shoulders. He held her so tight she was almost sitting in his lap. "How long?" he asked, working to keep his voice as level as hers.

"In the trunk?" she asked, waiting until he nodded to continue. "Too long for me. Probably not long enough for them."

"They meant to kill you?" Booth asked, unable to keep the disbelief from his voice. His hand rubbed gently up and down her arm.

Brennan shrugged. "I am not sure. I don't think they cared and toward the end of that ordeal, I'm not sure I did either."

"Don't," he ordered harshly. "I know we didn't know each other then, but don't you ever give up on me, Bones. It's part of what kept me going when you were buried alive. Knowing that you wouldn't give up."

"Booth," she said softly. "I knew you'd find me. I didn't give up."

He pinched the bridge of his nose. "When I signed up," he continued, needing her to understand, "I knew there was a chance, a good one, that I might not come home. And it was close to coming to that. Then I joined the FBI and while it's not war, it's not exactly safe either. Which is why I try to stay in front of you."

"I don't want you dying for me, Booth. There's always another choice."

"See, that's just it, Bones. For me, there isn't. Your death is something I don't come back from. Ever. I'd stay for Parker, but that would be my only incentive. The world is not a place I want to be in without you in it."

Turning slightly, she gave him full view of the annoyance in her gaze. "And you think I could come back from yours?"

"I think you could. Because I'm asking you to. You would do it for me. But don't ever ask the same of me, Bones. It may be the one thing I won't be able to give you. So no matter where you are, or what the odds are, I need you to keep fighting."

She pierced him with an unforgiving stare before finally nodding. He met it, knowing she would bring this up again. But for now she let it go. "After I was discovered, and released from the hospital, they sent me to a group home," she said, continuing her story. "It was the last family I went to." Realizing how close she was sitting to Booth, she pulled away from him. "People disappoint me, leave me. Always have since the time I was old enough to go to school. Friends, family. Don't you see this can't work. I'll always be the one that gets left behind."

"That's bullshit, Bones." His hand touched her shoulder, but she pulled out of his grasp. "I'm right here. Always have been. Snuck out of a hospital to come for you when you were in trouble. For someone who claims evidence is so important, you sure are ignoring a lot of it when it comes to me."

Rising from the bed, she turned, crossing her arms over her chest. "And you aren't? Evidence shows I don't have a big enough heart to love you or be married to you. You know so little about me."

Also rising, Booth remained on the opposite side of the bed. "I know everything about you that matters, Bones. You think some crappy incident from your teenage years changes how I feel about you? That I'm not sticking because you suffered as a child? So did I, but that doesn't seem to scare you off. Give me the same credit."

He didn't trust himself not to reach for her and she wasn't ready for that. But he was frustrated and tired. Booth would never react in anger, but how he wanted to just shake her until what he said made it into her head. "How can you claim you don't have that kind of heart? You built a bridge so a town could start over. You gave a piece of yourself to a child in foster care so he would trust you. Dammit, Bones, you have a heart so big it terrifies you."

"That's not logical, Booth. You can't be afraid of your own heart."

"Can't you?" he pushed. "You can't stand there and claim you feel nothing for me, Bones. Not after everything you've done for me, for us." He ran a hand through his hair, not sure how to get through to her. "This is what love is. It's fighting and caring and building a life together. It's wanting to spend time with someone more than you want your next breath. It's being brave enough to take a chance knowing you might get hurt."

"You want me to take a chance on something I'm not sure of. I'm always sure, Booth."

He made a sound she couldn't interpret. "I'm a sure thing, Bones, especially when it comes to you. You'd know that if you took ten seconds to think about it. The thing you aren't sure of, is yourself. And there isn't anything I can do about that." He shook his head. "You had a shitty childhood, Bones, we both did. Don't let it ruin your chance at a really great future. Separately, we are pretty decent people. Together, I don't think there is much we couldn't do."

"What if I make the wrong choice?" she asked him.

Booth shrugged. "What if you make the right one?" he countered. But he needed a break from talking them in circles. And she needed time and space away from him to think. He knew that. "I'm going to go back to the guest room." It killed him to do so. To leave her to fight battles alone when all he wanted to do was help her through it. "I have an early meeting, so you'll have to drive yourself in. Can we do lunch?"

Her eyes were carefully guarded as she nodded her head. She'd thought he was doing the one thing he'd promised not to do, leave her behind, until he'd mentioned lunch. "I'll call you if something changes."

"I love you, Bones," he said, not caring if the words made her angry. "If you didn't hear anything else I said to you tonight, hear that. I love you and I'm in love with you. Dinner with you was amazing and I hope like hell you want to do it every damn night for the rest of our lives."

He was doing everything in his power to convince her what he felt was solid and true. But Bones needed time to think things through and what he was asking wasn't small.

When she didn't respond, he sighed. "I'll see you tomorrow." Remaining silent, Brennan watched him exit the room. Sinking back to the bed, she forced herself to think about what he'd said. And analyze herself.

Her parents had walked away, her brother abandoned her, and any family willing to foster her had been abusive. Children had been cruel even before her life fell apart. She'd learned to rely on herself and close the world away.

It was hard for her to see what Booth saw. The bridge had introduced her to a quiet town with people she respected. It gave her a plausible excuse on why she'd gifted millions. Sharing a little piece of her past had allowed them to close a case. All perfectly logical reasons to deny anyone who suggested she'd made those decisions with her heart.

Turning her head, she looked toward the wall that separated the two rooms. Allowing herself, just for a second, to imagine what it might be like to stay married. To have someone to wake up next to and share memories with. To be in a crowded room and know she wouldn't feel lonely because he was there.

And there were other benefits to a marriage. Benefits that would make Booth blush. He was so shy about a natural human act. But he'd admitted to wanting her. She smiled at the thought before sobering again. Would he want children? Did she want children? Brennan had never given the idea much thought because she never imagined a man would feel that way about her. Now that one did, she wasn't sure what to do with him.

Could she, Brennan wondered, lose herself in him and still be herself? Booth would never force her to change. He'd already insisted that he loved her the way she was. But in order to accept him and all that he offered, she had to change. There was no other way to do this.

Sighing, she adjusted the pillows on the bed before leaning back against them. The rest of the night was going to be long. Not from nightmares, but from the fear that no matter how much she might want to, she wouldn't be able to change enough to allow herself to love him.

_Next chapter, I promise..._


	10. Chapter 10

_A/N: Have no idea how quickly you can get divorce papers or how that actually works, so please forgive what I am sure are wild inaccuracies in this chapter. But in order to get this where I want it to go, I'm going with it._

_Again, I must thank everyone for the response to this story. I have a few more ideas in mind that I want to work in so there is still more to come. I hope this chapter is everything you've been waiting for._

As he'd promised, Booth was gone the next morning. Brennan heard him moving around her apartment, but she hadn't left her bedroom. The seesaw she balanced on so precariously refused to come down on one side or the other. Until she took the one step it would take to send the thing falling in a certain direction, there was nothing to say to him.

Nothing she _could_ say to him. All the words were tangled up in fear of the unknown. And Brennan knew she didn't have forever to make a choice. Allow him to stay and try to find a way to make this work or let him go. Take a chance to have it all or be left with nothing.

It seemed so simple when she put it that way. Until logic and memories kicked in making it impossible for her to take that final step.

She'd packed her bag with the usual efficiency and headed toward the Jeffersonian. Along the way, she made one stop. To buy a large coffee from their favorite cart. Even her choice of drink was tied up with Booth. It seemed lately she was fueling her body with caffeine and adrenaline. Something had to give soon, or she was going to crash.

Sipping the coffee, she looked out over the expanse of the Washington Monument. The drink tasted bitter on her tongue and she grimaced. It didn't take long for her to acknowledge that it was better when Booth was with her. It seemed most things were.

It was impulse, something she didn't usually do, when Brennan pulled her phone from her pocket and texted Cam. She was taking a personal day. Throwing her coffee away, she hitched her bag over her shoulder and headed back toward her apartment.

This couldn't go on any longer. She'd make a trip to the lawyer she called and have them draw up the papers. That was a step, even if she wasn't sure it was the one she wanted to take.

The followup text came sooner than she expected, given that Booth was in an early meeting. But she had expected it. A personal day was unusual enough that her friends would be worried. Especially given everything that had happened with her and Hodgins.

If they had been aware of the rest of it, they would have hunted her down and refused to leave her side.

_u good_

No, she wasn't good. But Booth had his own things to worry about. She didn't need to be one of them. A sentiment both foolish and naive. And Brennan was neither. Why lie to the man who'd promised her nothing but honesty?

She started to type her standard response, then deleted it and tried again. None of the words sounded right and Brennan sighed in frustration.

In his meeting, Booth watched the response bubbles appear and disappear from the screen multiple times. He wondered what she typing and erasing. Messages telling him it was over? After their late night talk, he was starting to think this was a losing battle.

He felt bruised, similar to how he felt after his fight in Vegas. But there was only one way he was going to heal from this and Booth feared it wasn't going to happen.

_I'm functioning. I have something to take care of._

Booth, in a meeting that had already dragged on too long, had a sinking feeling he knew exactly what she was taking care of. And what kind of response was functioning? It was so Bones he almost smiled. Almost. Irritated, he typed out a response about meeting her for lunch and shoved his phone back into his pocket.

Brennan looked down at the message and sighed. He knew exactly what she was doing. She was glad someone did, because she didn't. But there wasn't anything she could do about that. Instead, she dialed a number and confirmed a time for the appointment.

OoOoOo

"I'm Anita Finley," the sharply dressed woman introduced herself. She looked young, but Brennan could see beneath the carefully applied makeup. There was experience there. Motioning to Brennan to enter her office, Anita closed the door behind them. There would be no question of privacy. "You spoke to my office previously and requested an expedited appointment."

"Thank you for seeing me so quickly," Brennan said coolly. There had to be some distance between herself and what she was doing to get through this.

But she couldn't distance herself enough. In the parking lot of this law firm, she'd sat with her hands wrapped around the steering wheel for so long they grew stiff. If she closed her eyes to try and clear her mind, all she saw were the small snippets of the wedding she barely remembered.

In her head, she could hear Booth telling her to do what she needed to do. But was this actually it? If she went through with this, it meant she was brave enough to let him go. It was possible for her to do that, but not stay with him?

It was a conscious choice to be alone. To accept that kind of life for herself. Was that courage? Or just fear.

Anita motioned toward coffee and Brennan shook her head. Shrugging, Anita prepared one for herself. "Your name tends to open a lot of doors, I imagine. And I have to say that your request to meet with a divorce lawyer was a bit of a surprise. Are you researching for your next novel?"

The woman in front of her did not have the appearance of someone doing research. She looked like a woman torn by indecision and wracked with guilt. Not a look Anita was unfamiliar with.

"No," Brennan said, looking down at her hands. Would she wear a ring? It seemed an odd questions to think about in a divorce lawyer's office. A ring would be a tangible symbol in the love Booth claimed he felt for her. It was something she'd been sure she'd never want, wouldn't have. Now? Now she could have all that and more and she was sitting in this office instead.

Brennan could almost picture it. A simple gold band that wouldn't get caught when she pulled gloves on and off. Maybe something engraved on it. Her thumb rubbed the spot where it would rest on her finger.

"No?" Anita prompted, wondering at the long pause. Coffee in hand, she took the chair next to Brennan. "Do you actually need a divorce?"

Years of doing her job and doing it well kept the surprise from showing on Anita's face when Brennan nodded. "I see," she said carefully. "Let me get my tablet."

Brennan watched as the lawyer crossed to her desk before returning with what she'd need to take notes. "It shouldn't be a difficult matter," Brennan said after Anita returned to her side.

"Divorces are always a bit more than anyone expects them to be. How long have you been married?"

Her cheeks pinking slightly, Brennan looked down at her hands again. "Not long. We were married in Las Vegas."

Clicking keys filled the silence as Anita began her notes.

Keeping her voice carefully neutral, Brennan folded her hands in front of her and continued. "I simply need a form drawn up that will dissolve a marriage between two parties. It shouldn't be difficult," she repeated.

Pausing in the act of typing, Anita stared at her. "You are worth millions. This won't be a simple divorce." Based on her books, she thought the scientist in front of her was less naive than this. "I know you've only been married a short time, but your husband can and probably will fight you for your money. This could be a long, drawn out battle."

Anita started typing again while Brennan waited in silence taking slow deep breaths. Booth wouldn't do something like that to her. He wouldn't want a penny of her money. He'd been angry when she'd offered to pay for part of their date. The idea that he might want something from her was ridiculous.

"Booth will not fight for any of my money," Brennan informed her. Only her heart, but Ms. Finley didn't need to know that. "This will be quite a simple matter. Draw up whatever is required so that our original assets stay with each person. This conversation is taking longer than signing divorce papers will. I imagine you can send them to me this afternoon. Forms as simple as these shouldn't take a woman of your experience long to complete. And if they do, I'm sure there are other firms I can deal with."

Anita looked at the woman next to her. She was a good judge of character and while she thought Dr. Brennan was incorrect, she nodded her head sharply. "If you say so. Where would you like them sent?" she asked, rising. "I will also need to know where to send the paperwork your husband will need to sign." In the mean time, Anita would be doing some basic legwork to prepare for when Dr. Brennan was forced to come see her again. Because no divorce was as easy as this woman claimed.

"My home will be fine." Brennan also rose and moved toward the door. "You can put all the paperwork in the same envelope. I will deliver it." She held out a piece of paper. "This is the information you need for Booth. Thank you for your assistance."

Brennan managed to get behind the wheel of her car before dropping her head in her hands. The marriage hadn't seemed real to her. She couldn't remember it. But the divorce she'd always remember. That, and the look on Booth's face when she presented him with the papers to sign.

She honestly didn't know if this was what she wanted. The divorce would be easy enough. Sign papers, file them and she would be single again. Except it wouldn't make everything go back the way it was. There was no going back in time, only forward.

What she wanted was her best friend. And the ability to take a leap of faith into something she had no experience with.

OoOoOoOo

"You saw a lawyer?" Booth asked, careful to keep the accusation from his voice. He'd thought, he'd hoped, that after what he thought was a successful date, she'd give them more time.

"You told me to. I told you I was going to," she said. "Ms. Finley is concerned you will fight for some of my income and drag this out."

"I don't want your damn money, Bones." He wanted her.

Brennan, whose carefully constructed walls were in danger of collapsing, kept her voice level. "I am aware of this, Booth. It wasn't something I was concerned with." She toyed with something on the bench next to her. "I told her that it would not be difficult. I don't think she believed me."

Except it was difficult. Everything about this was difficult.

They sat next to each other in a quiet section of a nearby park. It offered them enough privacy they felt comfortable talking, something the diner would not have afforded them.

The drinks next to them were untouched, as were the sandwiches Booth had brought them. Neither of them were interested in eating.

Booth leaned back and watched several adults toss frisbees in a nearby patch of grass. "So we just sign and everything will be over?" he asked.

Brennan wished he would look at her so she could at least guess his emotions. "Not everything, Booth. Just our marriage," she corrected. "And I haven't actually said I was signing them. Just that they would be coming."

He turned toward her and Brennan realized she was wrong. It was better if she couldn't see what was in his eyes. The hurt and anger and disappointment were clear. "You really think only our marriage will end, Bones? And you wouldn't be in such a hurry to get those papers if you didn't plan on signing them. You should have just been honest when I first asked you to take a chance."

No, she knew it wasn't just her marriage that would end. It would be everything she'd come to rely on. "No," she whispered brokenly. "I know what's going to happen. And I've been honest from the beginning, Booth. I know I'm not brave enough. I'm risking too much. You're risking too much. And I can't force you to live that way, you mean too much to me."

"But you aren't willing to try?" he asked. "You are taking the easy way out."

"You think this is easy?" she cried, alarmed as her voice broke. "We talk about the same things over and over again and nothing changes. I'm not eating and I'm barely sleeping. This is too hard for me, Booth." She pushed up from the bench so quickly, she almost lost her balance. "I want you to sign the papers when they come. It's clear I was never meant to have something like this."

Even if she might want it. But she'd always wonder each day if that was the day he'd choose to walk out the door. Was that worse than wondering if they could have made it work if she stayed?

Her eyes filled so quickly she couldn't see. Closing them, she could feel the tears on her cheeks and she hated herself for the weakness. If she was strong enough to walk away, there shouldn't be tears.

"Bones," he said, reaching out to grab her hand. She tried desperately to pull away and Booth refused to let go. "Temperance," he tried, knowing the use of her given name usually got her attention. It seemed he was doing it a lot lately. Trying to calm her down or get her to listen.

And while she paused trying to free her hand, she still shook her head. "No, Booth. My decision is made. You asked for me to make a choice and I've made it."

It was a comment born of fear and desperation. Both feelings clear in her voice. One she'd hoped would quiet her troubled mind. But it was a mistake. She knew it as soon as she gave it voice. But she didn't know how to take it back.

There was no fear that someone would leave her if she drove them away first. She'd blamed herself for a long time after both her parents and brother left her. She knew now, none of that had been her fault.

The same couldn't be said about this.

Is this what heartbreak felt like? If so, she didn't want to feel it. Her chest hurt and she felt like she couldn't draw a deep breath. Why did her weaknesses always show up in front of Booth? First nightmares and now a panic attack.

"Right now, Bones," he said, ignoring what she said, "I need you to sit down. You can't drive like this." He'd deal with his own feelings later. With a lot of alcohol.

He recognized fear when he saw it. And knew it was driving her reactions now.

"Breath," he ordered. The tone of his voice was not kind and he hadn't meant it to be. He was angry, with her, with himself. But at that moment, her breaths were shallow enough that he was worried she might pass out. "Hell of a reaction for someone confident in their decision," he noted.

He used the hand he held to pull her back to the bench next to him. He freed it to press at the back of her head forcing it toward her knees. "Slow down your breathing, Bones."

Allowing anger to overtake the rest, she fought him and pushed his hand away. "I don't faint," she snapped.

"Good, because I'm not catching you." Dropping his hand down, he reclaimed one of hers. "If," he continued, "this is what you want, you know I'll sign the damn papers. I told you that from the very beginning. I just wish you'd slow down a little bit. No one is forcing the issue. But there a couple of things you should probably know."

Warily, she looked at him. The anger he'd forced to the surface had distracted her from the panic attack, allowing her breathing to slow.

He didn't appear to be interested in letting go of her until he was done. And now that she was sitting, Brennan wasn't sure her legs would support her again if she tried to stand.

Booth used his free hand to run it through his hair. "I have to go through pretty frequent security checks given the job I do. This is going to show up on a search. Both the marriage and the divorce. If we stayed married, if that had been your choice, if it is still your choice, it wouldn't have been an issue." Booth refused to give up all hope until this was truly over. "A short marriage followed by a divorce?" He shrugged, hiding nerves beneath the motion. "It won't stay quiet forever. It will require explanations. And I'm not sure what I would say. The gossip and the rumors won't be as bad, if I change offices."

He'd warned her from the very beginning that this was going to change everything. Just as she'd warned him about her ability to hurt those she cared about. It appeared both of them were going to be right. "Where will you go?" she asked softly, not bothering to argue.

"There's a few openings," he said. "Probably take one that is away from here. Or maybe someplace a little closer to my son." He gave her hand a final squeeze and released her. "I won't be back, Bones."

He couldn't come back and move on. It would hurt too much and he wasn't willing to put himself through it.

Brennan's hands disappeared into her lap. She looked down and had to blink hard when the ring she'd allowed herself to imagine slowly disappeared. And knew there was no one to blame but herself. Licking her lips, she wondered what the hell she'd just done.

She continued to look down even as the tears dripped on her hands. "Just go," she finally ordered him, lifting her head. "I can drive." She didn't lie and tell him she'd be fine. "I'll call you when the papers are ready. I told the lawyer I wanted them tonight. I don't know if that's actually feasible." Trailing off, she wasn't sure what else there was to say.

"That fast?" Booth mumbled. The look on her face gutted him, but he couldn't reach for her. If she wanted a divorce, he had no right. "Whatever. Just call me. I'll come right over."

It wasn't too late, he told himself as he walked away. Until those papers were signed and filed, it wasn't too late. But Booth feared he'd already lost a battle he'd barely begun to fight.

The defeat in the way he carried himself clear. Brennan watched him until he disappeared from her view knowing she'd been the one to cause it.

Dismayed when she noticed her hands were shaking, Brennan cleaned the bench of the food that they hadn't touched. She wished there was someone she could talk to about this, but her only option had just walked away from her.

Wrapping her arms around herself, she leaned back and stared straight ahead. It was a long time before the image of Booth walking away quit replaying in her head.

OoOoOoOo

When the papers arrived, Brennan sat down at the table. She opened the envelope with steady hands and stared at the cover. Colored flags indicated where she would sign. Four signatures and her marriage would be over.

It was like signing an autograph she tried to convince herself, picking up the pen. But as she wrote the first letter, she dropped the pen and pushed away from the table.

Away from those stark white papers, in the bedroom she disappeared to so she couldn't seen them, Brennan pulled a box from beneath her bed. Inside were items she considered most valuable to her. The things she kept safely tucked away so they wouldn't be lost.

She pulled out two: Jasper the Pig and a folded piece of paper from one of her novels. There was no need to unfold it, she'd written on it only days before. It was her good-bye letter to Booth when she feared she wouldn't leave the inside of that car alive. Her fingers drifted across the page, remembering the sadness she'd felt at the thought of never seeing him again.

It wasn't life or death, but she was making the same choice now. And if he left her someday, wouldn't she like to have memories to carry her through? Was never loving him a better choice? Jasper the Pig stared at her with blank eyes when she held it in the center of her hand. A pet pig. Booth hadn't been able to give her a real one, but he'd made it as if he had. He listened to her childhood wishes no matter how silly they were. Somehow, through it all, he always managed to find the heart she kept so carefully hidden.

Looking a moment longer, she closed her fist around Jasper. The plastic cut into her hand but she didn't let go. When she reopened her fist, there were red marks on her hand from squeezing so tightly. She looked at those marks, a physical representation of the pain she carried, before putting everything away.

If she closed her eyes long enough, the image of Booth as he left that park reappeared in the darkness. It already haunted her and their marriage wasn't over. What would happen if she managed to write her name on each of those lines?

Booth would leave, that's what would happen. He'd leave and she'd be alone. He always talked about how meeting her had changed his life. How her influence had made him want to be a better man, a better investigator. Not once had she ever stopped to think about how meeting him had changed her.

Brennan had lived the better part of her adult life alone. Until Booth had walked into that lecture. Meeting him had led to a job for Angela and experiments with Hodgins. And those relationships were tenuous and still forming but they were there. Without Booth, she'd still be staring at ancient remains and Angela would be in Paris.

He'd made her a better person. And if she let him go now, Brennan wouldn't get a chance to tell him. Not only that, she knew who she'd be without him. He was right, she was pretty good alone. But Brennan didn't want to be that person. Not alone. Not anymore.

Returning to the kitchen, she leaned against the counter and reached for her phone. The text she sent was short.

_The papers are here. Don't come over. I'm not signing them._

In a final move, so there was no turning back, she picked up the divorce papers and tore them in half. In a defiant gesture against the fear that had haunted her for a week, Brennan turned off the lights. And went to bed.

OoOoOoOo

Don't come over? Was she actually serious? Booth found it hard to believe she could send a text like that and think he'd would follow her instructions.

He'd been at home, feet propped on the coffee table. The bottle of alcohol was at his feet, but so far untouched. Booth had been afraid if he started, he wouldn't be able to stop. And he was going to need to be sober enough to sign whatever Bones needed him to sign.

He'd loved and lost before. But this one hurt more. Why did the one he loved the most have to be someone who didn't feel the same? Couldn't the chips fall his way one time?

When the text had arrived, it had taken him almost ten minutes to work up the fortitude to read it. Only to read it a hundred times before it penetrated.

The hope had risen so quickly he'd felt lightheaded as he'd pulled on his shoes. Had she meant she wasn't signing them tonight? Or ever?

Her place was dark when he used his key to gain entrance. It surprised him considering the violence of her nightmare the previous evening.

He turned on one of the overhead lights to better see in the darkness. On the table, ripped in half, were what he assumed were the divorce papers she hadn't signed. He picked up the two halves, noting it appeared she started to add her name before stopping again. Tossing them back, Booth headed toward her bedroom.

It appeared that she was never signing them.

She rested facing the door and opened her eyes to look at him.

"Should I be worried that this is how you react when you hear someone walking around your place?" he asked.

"Most people who break in don't use keys," she pointed out. "I knew you'd come. You always do."

Removing his coat, he tossed it over a chair in the corner before sitting on the floor next to her. Her bed was low enough to the ground that they were practically eye to eye. "Why'd you change your mind?"

Propping her head up on her arm, Brennan looked at him. His face was in shadow, the only light coming from the window behind him. "Jasper the Pig."

"A plastic pig made you change your mind?"

"Too literal," she joked and was relieved when he smiled. "I thought about what he represented." She pressed her lips together. "You changed my life. I need you to know that."

"Okay," he said, trying to keep up.

Brennan continued over him. "We need to decide where we live. Who do we tell? When do we tell them?"

Booth reached out and pressed a finger to her lips. "Not tonight. You sleep. I'm going to head home."

She grabbed him before he stood. "You'll stay," she said, not making it a question. "We are married. And if you're serious, if we're serious about doing this, we stay together. You have extra clothes in the guest bedroom. Go change and come back."

He simply stared without moving. "That's a helluva step, Bones. Neither of us have just woken from nightmares or are afraid of the dark right now. This is different. Are you sure?"

She laughed and pushed his hand back toward him. "I'm sure now. I still don't know how this is going to work, but I'm doing it. Letting you go isn't an option. You mean too much to me. So I have to keep you."

It wasn't a declaration of love, but from Bones, it was close. Searching her eyes until he was satisfied, Booth rose and left the room. He returned only minutes later wearing sweats and a t-shirt. He was surprised to find a shirt still in the drawer. Bones tended to take those and wear them herself.

Crawling under the covers on the opposite side of the bed, he was careful to stay separated from her. Until she rolled and tucked herself in next to him. Pleased, he wrapped an arm around her. "We seem to be getting into bed together a lot," he joked softly.

She pressed her head into his shoulder. "You make my life better because you make me better. I need you to know that, okay? I gave you what you needed to stop gambling, you gave me the world. I know what I want now." Her breath sighed across his neck. "I'm exhausted."

He wanted to ask her what she knew she wanted, but not when she was half asleep. She was barely making sense right at that moment. "I've got you. Just let me take care of this for you tonight. Nothing will come and get you in the dark."

By the time he was done with the few short sentences she'd fallen asleep. Booth took the chance to press a kiss to the top of her head, before closing his eyes. As sleep took him he sent up one desperate prayer.

Don't let this be a dream.


	11. Chapter 11

_I'm glad everyone enjoyed the last chapter. Thank you for all the reviews and sorry for scaring all of you. _

She woke early and slipped from his arms to use the restroom. Coming back, Brennan leaned against the frame of the door and watched him sleep.

For the first time in almost a week, there'd been no nightmares. Nothing but warmth and strength in her dreams the previous night.

The choice was made and there was no going back on it. Her heart was his, for better or for worse. If he crushed it, there would be no other for her. This was a one time deal and she knew it.

It didn't scare her like it should have. If she could trust anyone with her heart, it was Booth. She was sorry it took her so long to work through it.

Brennan was married. And to her endless surprise, she was okay with it. She only hoped Booth would continue to feel the same way.

Booth knew she watched him the minute he woke. Unsure if that was good or bad he opened his eyes and searched for her.

In the early morning light, he spotted her across the room. "Come back to bed, Bones. It's still early." He wasn't sure of the time, but hoped he was right. His body was not ready to get up.

He hated this time of day, when he had to convince his body to move again. But knowing he was now going to wake with Bones at his side had him rethinking that opinion.

The air was chilly in the room, but he threw back the covers as she slid in next to him. "Your feet are cold," he grumbled, pulling the covers around them.

Even with her back to him, Booth knew she didn't close her eyes. Though they weren't divorcing, he feared they still had a ways to go before she considered herself married to him. But if Bones said they were staying married, they were. "Just sleep, Bones. We'll figure it out."

Instead, she rolled to face him. "You really think we can make this work?"

Reaching up, he traced his fingers down her cheek toward her shoulder. "Don't you? Why would you agree to this otherwise?"

"I bought coffee yesterday from our cart. Same coffee I always buy. I stood there and tried to drink it." His fingers had drifted up again and were threading themselves through her hair. "It tasted terrible. Because you weren't standing there drinking it with me. It makes no sense," she complained. "But it seems my life is so intertwined with yours that I don't know how to live it by myself anymore. And I don't want to."

"I like being with you too, Bones," he said. He'd managed to hide the smile at her complaint about the coffee. "We are too stubborn to give up when we've decided to do something. We'll make it work."

"Okay." She yawned. Moving toward him, she tucked herself under his chin. "Can you just hold me. I want to go back to sleep."

"Yeah," he said. He wrapped his arms around her. "I've got you."

The second time he woke she was still asleep. But it was late enough that he knew they had to get going or both of them were going to be late to work.

There were so many things to figure out. And nothing at all. As far as he was concerned everything else was easy after persuading her to stay.

Booth rose and watched her sleep, similar to the way she'd watched him. When she made a choice, Bones did it with everything she had. Booth knew her heart was his now, even if she'd never put it that way to him. He would do everything is his power to make sure she'd never regret it.

OoOoOo

"I've been thinking," Booth said, sliding a pancake on the empty plate in front of her. "That we can keep our own places for now. Spend our time after work together, move back and forth between the two places, see how it goes." He gave her a shy smile, but Brennan was looking down at her plate and she didn't catch it. "Or just move in together," he suggested. "Have a couple of kids and live off your salary from writing books."

When he woke that second time, it was to Brennan wrapped in his arms, her head on his chest. It was both the best and most terrifying feeling he'd ever felt in his life.

He wanted this marriage to work. And he wanted Bones to love him, to be happy with him. It was a lot of stress, filled with a lot of hope.

"You okay, Bones?" he asked when the silence stretched on. It was pretty clear from her lack of reaction that she wasn't listening to him at all. "Are you, do you want to, change your mind?" His voice was tentative at the end, but he was having trouble reading her mood that morning.

She'd said they were staying married, but what did she see in their future. A marriage on paper only? Something he would never accept. Or was she just being typical Bones? Adjusting at a pace that often frustrated him.

The final question finally got her attention. Except he should have known better. "We aren't living off my writing, Booth. I'm not quitting my job. And I'm not changing my mind. We're married. We're staying married." To punctuate her statement, she grabbed the two halves of paperwork and took them to the garbage. In a final, defiant gesture, she ripped each piece in half several more times before throwing them away.

"As for kids, we can talk about that at some point. But I've just decided that I'm married. I'm not ready for that discussion yet."

Booth stared at her. He wasn't sure she'd ever want to discuss it. Finding out that she would at some point was a pleasant surprise.

The seesaw had finally tipped in one direction because she'd taken that step. And now it would stay there. She'd jumped off and there was no way to force it back to the other side.

Crossing her arms, she stared at him. Brennan had spent some time that morning thinking about what being married meant. She knew it was a partnership and was sure she could do that. Love? If and when it came, she hoped she'd recognize it.

Physical attraction? He was certainly a handsome man and there was no doubt in her mind they'd make a good match in the bedroom. But the thought of that, of when it would happen, was making her a little crazy. The decision to take this step had taken what felt like forever. Now that she'd made it, Brennan wanted everything that came with it.

They'd spent more nights together than apart the last week. A lot of that time in bed. But neither of them had made a move to turn it into anything but sleep. It felt like being in mud. Take one step forward and you were stuck again.

It wasn't an official marriage until they slept together. But she knew Booth, who was a little shy in that department, wouldn't take that step until he thought she was ready.

Which meant she was going to have to indicate that it was okay if this marriage became a little more physical. But Brennan, not comfortable with flirting or innuendo, wasn't sure how to go about it.

Booth watched her, spatula in hand. "What the hell is going on with you, Bones?" he asked. Silence and staring and declarations had filled his last twenty-four hours. Booth might have complained except somehow he'd ended up right where he wanted to be. But her current perusal of him was more than friendly, it looked almost predatory, and he wasn't sure how to interpret it.

Tilting her head to the side, she finally blinked and broke the stare. And went with bold. "I want you to kiss me, Booth. And I am not good at this sort of thing, so I don't-"

He'd dropped the spatula at the word kiss and silenced the flow of words from her mouth by pressing his against hers. He'd moved so fast across the room she'd barely had time to register it before he was invading her space.

He tasted like pancakes, as did she. The smell of his aftershave was intoxicating and Brennan let herself sink into the moment. Her hands came up to grab his open collar and pull him closer. Her lips parted and Booth took advantage, tangling his own tongue with hers.

Booth shoved his hands into her loose hair, not entirely sure what had just happened. It was better than the memory of the kiss outside the pool hall and he took advantage of the moment.

When they separated, Booth pressed his forehead to hers. "Same question, Bones. What the hell is going on with you this morning? Not," he continued with a chuckle, "that I'm complaining."

Neither was she and she licked her lips. Pulling back enough to see his face, she smoothed his shirt back out with her hands. "We're married." she explained. "And I wasn't sure if you'd know what I wanted. Of what you wanted."

He cupped her face in his hand. "Did you for a moment think that I wouldn't want you? We already had that discussion. I just thought this step might take a little longer."

"I know." Stepping away, she went back toward the table and picked up her fork, finally eating the pancake that had now gone cold. "So who's apartment are we staying at tonight. And are we driving separately? And if we want to move in together, I'm sure we can find a place we both like. In fact," she continued, twirling her fork in the air, "a place together is probably the best option. We are going to get tired of figuring out whose place we are going to." She looked up to see the shocked look on his face. "What?"

"How do you go from not wanting to take any steps with me to just jumping through them all at once? Yesterday at this time, you were visiting a lawyer. Today, you want to move in with me." Booth hadn't moved after the kiss, watching her from across the room. His head was spinning from trying to keep up with her.

"My decision is made, Booth. You are stuck with me. And now that I've got what I never thought I'd have, I want all of it," she explained, giving voice to her earlier thoughts. "If we go too fast, just say something. You promised honesty."

"This speed is fine, Bones. I'll let you know if it isn't." Booth shook his head and retrieved the spatula from the floor. He wasn't sure he'd ever keep up with her. And he didn't care.

OoOoOoOo

"How's Booth?" Angela asked, coming into Brennan's office. "And you? I feel like I haven't talked to you in forever."

"Fine," Brennan answered. "We are both doing well." She drew a shallow breath, fighting the blush that tried to color her face. It wouldn't take much for Angela to figure out something was going on and Brennan wasn't telling. "He might have to go away for a conference for a couple of days. I'm hoping his assessment of the situation is incorrect. I hate working with other agents."

"Trust me, they know that," Angela said, but not unkindly. Brennan had a reputation among other agents and most of them were no more interested in working with her than she was with them.

Booth had somehow managed to see right through her facade to the person underneath. Angela would have respected him for that alone.

Brennan sighed. "I can be difficult to work with," she acknowledged.

"You are brilliant and expect the best," Angela said, waving her hand. "Don't apologize for that. Besides, look on the bright side. It's always fun to see new agents react to us."

"React to us?" Brennan echoed. "How do other agents react to us?"

"It's more in the way they look at us." Angela snorted. "Of course, none of them look at you the way Booth does."

Brennan's brow furrowed. "What does that mean?" How did Booth look at her? Would that look change, now that their relationship had changed?

Angela shook her head. It figured that Brennan had never noticed the way Booth looked at her. Or she was assuming that was a look between friends, something it definitely was not.

"Men think you're hot, Brennan. They think I'm hot, too, and Cam. When all three of us are somewhere together, their reaction is quite amusing to watch."

"Are you saying Booth doesn't look at me like I'm attractive? Because scientifically, my body is very symmetrical. You said he doesn't look at me they way the rest of them do."

"You would find a way to science this," Angela said affectionately. She was also intrigued by Brennan's reaction to the conversation. She actually seemed worried about how Booth saw her. That was a change from the normal dance they did. Angela filed it away to think about later. "Booth doesn't look at you like you're hot. I mean, he does, but that's not all of it."

Brennan inwardly cringed at the thought Booth might not look at her that way. But the kiss they'd shared that morning made her sure she was misunderstanding Angela. Her friend was taking a long time with this explanation. "How does he look at me then? Because you aren't making sense."

"Oh, Bren, he looks at you like you are his world. Except when you annoy him. Or he annoys you. Which is quite often, now that I think about it. But when you aren't annoying each other, during the quiet moments when he thinks no one is watching him, he lets that look slip out. I've caught that look on Hodgins once or twice. It makes the heart go all soft."

Angela knew what that look meant, the feelings behind it. But it seemed as if Brennan was still avoiding anything deeper with Booth.

"A heart doing that could be dangerous, Angela." She meant literally, but Angela didn't take it that way.

"I know. That's what makes the whole thing worth it. You should try it sometime."

"Try what?" Brennan heard herself ask.

"Letting your heart get soft."

Brennan shook her head. "Angela, this conversation makes no sense."

Angela laughed and got to her feet. "It will, someday. Just try to watch Booth once in a while. You might be surprised by what you see. This conversation makes me want to go find Hodgins. Don't look for us until after lunch."

"Leave your phone on so I can call you if there is a case," Brennan called after her.

Booth ducked through the door as Angela stalked away to find Hodgins. "Where is she off to?" he asked, closing the door.

Brennan smiled, but shook her head. "I'm not sure you want to know. You tend to be a little prudish about these things."

"I'm not," he argued. "You have someplace we can go to get privacy?"

"Booth," she said tentatively, "I'm not sure what idea you got from this morning, but we aren't having sex in the Jeffersonian."

He actually looked slightly horrified at the thought. "In the middle of the day with hundreds of people around? You're right, we're not." He paused, knowing how his very literal wife might interpret that statement. That he wasn't interested in ever having sex with her. "Not that I don't want to. There's just too many people around."

Wife. She was his wife and he didn't have to try to ignore that fact any longer. Bones had agreed to stay married to him. What were the actual chances of that?

She shook her head. "I actually understood that one, Booth. Why do we need privacy?"

His hand disappeared into the pocket of his suit, where it stayed. "Maybe this isn't the right time," he said. Shaking his head, he pulled his hand from his pocket again. "Maybe I'm going too fast this time."

He looked uncomfortable and she tilted her head. He rarely looked that way when he spoke to her. "Let's go down to bone storage," she suggested. "It's quiet there."

"Not a lot of cameras either," he said. Falling into step beside her, he caught the surprised look on her face. "Cam took me there when you and Hodgins were in trouble," he explained.

"Buried alive you mean?" she asked, putting into words what he didn't like to think about.

"Yeah. There was a timer on the platform of how much oxygen they calculated you had. When it ran out," he trailed off shuddering slightly. "I just needed a minute," he finished. "She brought me down here and gave me a pep talk."

"Why did you need a pep talk?" she asked. Opening the door, she took a quick glance around to be sure they were alone before closing it behind her. There was also a lock, which she turned. Most of the staff and security had keys, but it would give them some sort of warning if they required it.

"The smartest people I know just told me you ran out of breathable air. The woman I love, according to them, was more than likely dead. I just needed a minute to remind myself that you'd find a way. That my chance with you wasn't over before it began."

Her eyes softened, but she didn't return the sentiment. Booth hoped she felt it, but with her tendency to go slow at first, he figured it would be awhile before she actually said the words.

Given this morning though, when she decided that's what she felt, she wouldn't waste any time making sure he knew it.

There were still traces of her everywhere in the room, but Booth was able to look at them differently this time. "Are you the only one that comes down here?"

Brennan looked around. "Before you, it was where I did most of my work. Unidentified remains. I took a lot of satisfaction from giving someone back their name." She met his eyes. "Are you stalling, Booth?"

He blinked but didn't disagree with her assumption. "When did you get good at reading people?"

"I'm not. I've just learned, from hours of observing you, how to tie your movements to your emotions. You are fidgeting with something in your coat pocket and you keep moving around the room touching my things before putting them back down. You don't often sit still, but both of those activities indicate nervous behavior. And you wanted privacy."

He shook his head, but didn't stop his relentless prowl around the room. He touched a lot of things and Brennan noted each one was hers. He'd never been this agitated even when he'd asked them to stay married.

"I'm not changing my mind, Booth," she said, trying to determine what was going on with him. "I thought we'd covered that already. Shouldn't we be past the point of convincing each other how we feel?" She hadn't told him she'd loved him yet, but Brennan was starting to be more sure that she did. Would he be like this until she said those words to him?

"Not why I'm here, Bones." Now that he was here and alone with her he was struggling. "I'm not sure about this now that I'm standing in front of you."

Brennan had tired of the cat and mouse game. And he wasn't giving in unless she pushed him. The reversal of roles amused her. "What's in your pocket, Booth?"

Booth watched her warily as she came toward him. Her blue eyes glanced down at the pocket before up at him again. "This is a bad idea," Booth said, but he reached into the pocket and pulled out a jewelry box.

Too soon. His panicked heart beat at a rhythm he wasn't sure was safe. But it was too late to stop now.

Her eyes widened, the only noticeable reaction. His eyes not leaving her face, he opened it slowly.

On black velvet was nestled a plain gold band. Recessed into the band was a diamond. "Is that?" she asked, reaching out to brush her fingers across the surface.

"A wedding band," he finished for her. His voice was husky. "It was foolish and I'm okay if you don't want it. You only agreed to stay married to me last night. So I won't be upset, Bones."

"When did you get it?" Pulling her hand back, she tucked both inside the pockets of her lab coat. "Because it hasn't even been twenty-four hours since I agreed to this."

"After I told you I didn't want a divorce." Reaching back into his pocket, he pulled out a long gold chain. "I drove past the place and couldn't stop myself from looking. It was perfect for you and I bought it. I wasn't sure you would want to wear it on your hand yet. So I bought the chain too, so you could wear it that way if you wanted to. The diamond is recessed into the band so it won't get caught in your gloves. That's why I got you the band instead of an engagement ring." Booth knew he was babbling and pressed his lips together.

He was alarmed to see there were tears on her cheeks. Quickly shifted the items so one hand was free Booth brushed at them. His heart dropped into his stomach. "I should have waited. Or let you pick it out yourself. We can take it back and get something you like better." Not that he thought he could. But maybe he could get some sort of credit toward a different ring.

"No," she said quickly, shaking her head. One hand came out of her pocket and rested on his arm. Brennan was surprised to realize he was shaking slightly. She managed to find a smile she hoped was reassuring. "No, it's perfect. I pictured a ring that was just like this. You got me what I saw in my head."

"Oh. Okay." The weight he'd had on his shoulders lessened slightly. "You pictured what a wedding band might look like?"

"Yes. When I sat in the lawyer's office. I pictured your ring on my hand." She laughed. There was surprised joy in the sound. "I shouldn't want it. A visible sign that I belong to someone. What does it say about me that I do? You read my mind again. I don't understand how you do that." Brennan looked up into his eyes and decided she liked what she saw there. "We aren't going too fast?" she whispered.

Booth chuckled. "Bones, I don't think we've done any of this the way we're supposed to. But for you and I, maybe this is the way it's supposed to be. I'm not going to question it."

She'd gone back to just looking at him and Booth waited before finally breaking the silence that had suddenly fallen.

"Sometimes Bones, when you stare at me like that, I have no idea what you're thinking. It's a little terrifying," he admitted.

"Sorry," she apologized, but didn't explain. "But, the necklace for now. For a little longer." Taking both from his hands, she threaded the ring on the chain and hooked it around her neck. Surprised her fingers were steady, she tucked it beneath her shirt. "I worry that if we tell others that it will mess this up. Mess us up. I'm not ready for that."

"I get it, Bones. We need to talk about how to handle this, given that we work together." He cupped a hand behind her head and pulled her forward to brush his lips against hers. And kept a serious look on his face when she pushed away from him.

"Not in the Lab, Booth," she admonished. But her cheeks had turned pink and she could't quite keep the smile off her face.

"I'm glad you liked it," Booth said, running his finger down the portion of the chain he could see.

Brennan's eyes widened slightly as his finger traced lower down her chest but he pulled back before she had to make a choice on whether to allow him to run that finger further down her body.

"See you at your place tonight?" he asked. He was pleased to see her breath coming just a little faster than a moment before.

"Yes, Booth. I'll see you later."


	12. Chapter 12

_A/N: This chapter has a strong T and maybe an M rating. Nothing too explicit, but definitely some heavy suggestions. Keep that in mind when reading._

_This story is going to be 15 chapters (I'm pretty sure) so we are approaching the end. But we still have a few more things to take care. If you have time, please leave a review. And thank you again for the reviews, follows, and likes I've received._

_Some arguing and some fun in this chapter. I hope you enjoy._

_OoOoOo_

They continued in a routine that was comfortable for both of them. She still wore the ring around her neck and had yet to say the words he most wanted to hear, but Booth was confident they were moving in the right direction.

Still, they were stuck in a holding pattern. Brennan waiting for him to make that final move toward her and Booth waiting for some sort of sign that she wanted him to.

At the Jeffersonian they were very careful around each other. Lunches were kept to the appropriate amount of time and they never disappeared where someone couldn't see them.

Despite their care not to give anything away, their friends still suspected something was up. But they never would have guessed what it was. They feared, in quiet conversations when they thought the partners weren't around, that they'd had some sort of fight.

All had noticed the necklace she wore around her neck. Angela had bluntly asked her where it came from and Brennan had indicated it was some sort of gift and not explained further. She'd been uncomfortable enough that Angela let it go, wondering if it had come from Brennan's father.

If that was the case, Angela had confided to Hodgins, it was no wonder the two were acting weird around each other.

"Hey, Bones," Booth called out as he prepared the bed for them to go to sleep, "I think they suspect something at the Jeffersonian."

"What makes you think that?" Brennan called back. She was only half focusing on the conversation, staring at herself in the mirror.

The nightgown was missing more fabric than it had. But Brennan thought it flattered her figure and made it clear exactly what she wanted. The price for such a small amount of fabric had seemed ridiculous to her, but the woman who assisted her at the store guaranteed it would do the job.

Brennan didn't really view what she hoped would happen as a job. And she was positive Booth wouldn't see it that way.

If their secret was out, there wasn't going to be any question in her mind of whether or not they were actually married. Besides, she wanted the man currently waiting for her in their bedroom. Had waited for days to him to make a move. It was time to take matters into her own hands.

Two problems. One solution. A solution Brennan was looking forward to. She was positive it wouldn't take very many words for Booth to follow her lead.

"Could you just come back here so I don't have to yell down the hall?" Booth called back. "Something is up."

_Hopefully, it's about to be._

She ran her hands down her hips one last time. It had been a long time since she worried about how she looked without her clothes on. "I'll be right there."

"You ready for bed, Bones?" he asked without looking up. "And to continue my suspicion about your-" He lost the rest of the words as he looked up to see her standing in the door watching him.

She wore a piece of clothing that somehow managed to cover everything and nothing at all. The dark shimmery blue of whatever she was wearing highlighted the pale skin that was suddenly on display.

He licked his lips. "Ummm, you wearing that to sleep in?" he asked. He wasn't sure where to look first and he tore his eyes from her body to look into hers.

They'd slept in the same bed since the night she'd announced she wasn't signing the divorce papers. But that's all they'd done. Sleep. Sure, they'd been wrapped around each other, but neither of them had taken a step toward becoming more intimate.

It was clear she had no intention of only sleeping tonight.

Brennan laughed, her voice husky as she enjoyed his discomfort. "I am," she said coming toward him.

Where had she learned to roll her hips like that? "What should I wear to bed?" he asked.

Stopping so close she had to look up to see his face, Brennan pulled his shirt over his head and threw it behind them. "I think you should wear even less than I'm wearing," she suggested.

He lifted his hands to her shoulders, toying with the thin straps that held on the gown. "I have to ask, Bones. I just need to know." He trailed off as her own hands flattened against the skin of his chest before tracing slowly downward.

"I'm sure, Booth. We both want this. What are we waiting for?"

He scooped her up and enjoyed the surprised squeak she gave as he carried her to the bed. "We aren't waiting," he informed her. "Not anymore."

OoOoOoOo

Booth rested next to her with his hand on her bare stomach. Lazily he traced his fingers up and down marveling at the feel of her smooth skin beneath his fingers.

"You're going to get cold," he said, but didn't make a move to get a blanket. Now that he had her naked there was no way he was covering it up. Leaning forward, he kissed her bare shoulder. "You're beautiful, Bones."

"Mmmm," she hummed, resting with her eyes closed. "But you're right about being cold." Much to his disappointment, she reached out to pull a blanket over both of them. "So you think our secret is out?"

Booth, already wondering how long he should wait to strip that blanket off of her again, shook his head. "That's what you're thinking about right now? I don't know how I"m ever going to keep up with you." He was having a hard time thinking about anything other than her. And all the places his hands had touched in the last few minutes. And whether there was any skin he hadn't brushed up against yet.

She rolled and propped herself up on a bent elbow. "Sexually?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Because I would have to disagree with that assessment. And I think the facts prove otherwise. You keep up quite well."

Booth couldn't stop the grin that slowly grew on his face. "Then to answer your question, yes, I think our secret is out. Or they suspect something is up between us."

"Your evidence?" she asked. Then distracted him by leaning forward and pressing her naked body against his.

He tangled his fist in her hair and pulled her back slightly to see her face. "That's just mean. But they are having whispered conversations when they think we aren't looking. And watching us like you Squints do when you look at evidence." He released her hair and let her fall toward him.

"Let them talk," she said. "I doubt they suspect this."

"We are going to have to do something soon, since I guess we are married now," he said, trying desperately to stay focused on what he was saying to her. But her mouth and her hands were making that increasingly difficult.

"You guess?" In one fluid motion, she rolled on top of him and put her hands on his shoulders. "I guess we better do it again. Then you won't have to guess."

OoOoOo

He should have known it was too good to last. A couple of nights was all they'd had until he Cullen had called him in.

"I don't want to go, Bones. But it isn't like I can tell him no. I just don't want you outside the Jeffersonian until I get back."

Knowing it would happen, fearing it, didn't make it go any better. Booth knew as soon as he expressed any concern about her leaving the Lab that she would bristle under the constraint.

"I can't believe we are still talking about this," Brennan snapped. The fork landed next on her plate with a crash. "I'm not changing how I do my job because you are worried about me. You've always been worried about me. How is this different?"

The discussion had started at breakfast, when Booth had carefully approached the topic. He'd known the day before, but had wanted one more night with her before starting this conversation. Better they had the whole day to figure it out than go to bed angry.

Now it was dinner and they still hadn't figured anything out. But at least they were still trying. That's what he told himself when frustration threatened to take over.

He hated conferences and trainings. Typically they were nothing more than a waste of his time. This time, the thought of leaving Bones behind was making it harder than normal.

Worry mixed with love and a desire to keep her safe. Was it any wonder she was fighting him on it? She'd been in places as dangerous as those he'd visited. Safety was an illusion and Bones knew it, whether he was there or not.

Unfortunately, their discussion was still as fiery as he'd suspected it would be. He'd known being married wouldn't be easy, but couldn't they have a little longer before their first fight?

He sincerely hoped he wouldn't be sleeping in the guest room when this was finally over.

Pinching the bridge of his nose Booth fought the urge to just get up and walk away from the table. Not figuring this out would set a bad precedent for how the rest of their marriage would go. "It's different because I won't be there. I'm not asking you to never go in the field again, Bones. I'm just asking you not to go without me." Booth was pretty sure it was the hundredth time he'd expressed the same sentiment. "And you are right, I do always worry about you. I'm not saying you can't do your job without me. That you can't keep yourself safe. It's just hard for me to trust someone else with that."

There. He'd been honest. Bones had a hard time understanding her feelings. He understood his own quite well. He just didn't like to put them into words. But he'd make the effort for her.

Brennan leaned back in the chair and took a deep breath. Annoyed, and not entirely sure at who, she pushed the plate away from her. Despite the effort she'd put into the meal, she no longer felt the urge to eat it.

"Can I just have five minutes?" she finally said. "I know we need to figure this out, but I need five minutes."

It was hard, but she was trying to see past her own feelings to understand his. But the constant rehashing of the same argument was making that difficult for her to do.

Booth stared at her from across the table. "Why?" he demanded. "To come up with new arguments on why you're right and I'm wrong?"

This argument was unavoidable and they'd both known it. The question was whether or not they could find a way to work through it without saying things they couldn't take back.

"I don't need five minutes for that," she pointed out coolly and then felt bad when his face darkened. But she knew it was important to explain herself.

Arguing with Booth wasn't new for her. In fact, there were times she looked forward to it. Arguing with Booth as his wife was something entirely different. Brennan didn't want to change who she was, but she also didn't want to worry Booth just because she was stubborn. Or because they were both being stubborn.

So she tried to put into words feelings that didn't always make sense. "Because sometimes I need to think about things, Booth. Something you know. So I don't want you to think I'm storming away, which it is going to look like. But I'm not. I just-" she shoved at the plate again, not sure how to explain what was going on in her own head.

"Okay," he agreed easily. A break was a good thing. "I'll clean up since neither of us seem to have an appetite right now. Then, maybe we can figure something out that both of us can work with."

Brennan rose, but turned back toward him. He'd begun to put food away but straightened. "Something else?" he asked, his voice almost formal.

She winced at the tone. "We aren't very good at this, are we?" Brennan asked. There was a hint of fear in her voice as she looked at him.

They were definitely good in bed. And they were figuring out how to share a space. But the first thing they'd truly disagreed on had turned into an argument. A long argument.

"Good at what, being married?" he asked. But he turned away before he took a good look at her face. "Bones, a month ago we were two single people doing what we wanted, when we wanted. And yes, we did a lot of those things together, but it was still different."

Tilting her head, she waited. "And now?" she finally asked.

"Now we are married. And that means finding a way to do things that involved another person. I can tell you that I worry when you go places and I'm not there. That maybe I can't keep all the bad things from happening, but I like to pretend that I can." He shrugged. "We'll figure it out."

Pressing her lips together, she turned away without a response. She heard the confidence in his voice. She just didn't feel that way herself. Not leaving the room, she walked to the window to stare out it.

If she was honest with herself, she didn't really want to go out in the field without Booth. But she wasn't comfortable with him dictating that to her.

Worry was something she understood. She felt it now. He hadn't answered her question about whether or not they were good at this. Did that mean he didn't think they were? Such a short amount of time and he was already unhappy?

Behind her Brennan could hear the clinking of dishes and water running as Booth cleaned up the dinner they'd barely touched. Booth's grandparents had at least provided a model of a decent marriage. She'd thought her own parents had been happy, at least until the moment they'd disappeared. Now with what she'd learned about their past, Brennan wasn't sure she'd ever known them at all.

Married people argued. She'd solved enough cases with Booth to know that. But was it a bad sign that they were fighting about something already?

Still, she didn't want him to worry unnecessarily about her. So Brennan tried to compromise. Because she didn't want to scare him. And knew that although he tried to pretend otherwise, Booth still feared the Gravedigger finding her again.

"What if," she said without turning. She could see a reflection of her face and Booth in the window. Booth looked wary and Brennan couldn't blame him. Nothing she'd offered so far had been close to a compromise. More like her refusing to listen to his concerns. "I only go to the location where the victim is discovered, like I normally do." Her speech was turning more formal and less emotional, something that happened when she was nervous. "Dr. Saroyan and Dr. Hodgins will be there as well. The number of people with me should help alleviate some of your worry."

She wasn't foolish enough to think he wouldn't worry at all.

Behind her Booth crossed his arms over his chest. "Any reason you didn't turn around to say that to me?" he asked. Somewhere in between her leaving the table and walking to the window she'd tangled herself up in something. Now, he knew she was hiding from him.

"I won't go to interview any witnesses without you. I'll focus on the body of the victim until you return in two days." Brennan wasn't sure if she was reminding him of that fact, or herself. "Maybe there won't be a new case while you are gone."

"Bones?" The tone of his voice had changed again and she was struggling to keep up. At some point, his anger had changed to concern. She watched his reflection walk toward her. "That's a solution I think we can be happy with, but I still don't understand why you aren't looking at me."

Closing her eyes, Brennan turned before opening them again. At some point she'd pulled the ring from beneath her shirt and toyed with it nervously.

Booth hissed out a breath. "What scared you, Bones?" he asked. Reaching out, he pulled her into his arms. She remained stiff, but he ignored that and held on tight. "It isn't like this is the first argument we've ever had. Hell, this one wasn't even that loud."

"It's-"

"Don't say nothing," he interrupted, releasing her but not stepping back. "If you don't want to talk about it, fine. But don't say it's nothing when it's something."

She leaned back to grab the frame of the window behind her with both hands. With her knuckles facing out, Booth had a pretty good idea on how hard she squeezed. "You didn't answer me when I asked if were good at this. Your non answer is usually an indication of avoiding the question. Which means you don't think we are good at this and don't want to hurt my feelings."

"Wow," he uttered, rubbing a hand down his cheek. "I thought you science people didn't jump to conclusions."

Her eyes snapped fire at the comment. "I don't jump. Conclusions are based on facts and I gave you the facts as I saw them."

"Your facts are wrong," he said bluntly. He paced away and back again. "You remember when I asked you to stay married to me in your kitchen and I told you I'd never been married before?"

"Of course I remember, Booth."

"So I don't know if we are doing this right. We are just doing it. But we kept talking even when we were angry. No one stormed from the room and we found a compromise that works. So I'd say we are doing okay."

"You at least had your grandparents. I had parents who disappeared." Moving away from the window she sank down on the couch. Booth sat next to her and pulled her into him."I just never know what I'm doing. It's an unusual feeling for me and I don't like it."

"There is no right or wrong. We just figure out what works for us."

"So you're saying we will find a way."

"We already did," he pointed out. Booth let out a frustrated breath. "I'm not leaving, Bones. Ever. Just stop worrying about that. It's a waste of your time because it isn't going to happen."

As usual, he'd seen exactly what she hadn't wanted to admit to. "I'm not either. Leaving. You're it for me. I won't get another chance at this because I don't want to do it with anyone but you." She leaned into the arm he'd put around her shoulders.

He bent and kissed the top of her head. "I love you, Bones." And continued before she felt forced to say the words back to him. Booth wasn't sure what was holding her back, but he didn't want her to feel pressured to say them before she was ready. "I have to pack. Two days. You'll be okay without me? You'll stay at the Jeffersonian?"

Brennan patted a hand against his chest. "I'll be fine, Booth. I told you I'd only go and look at the location of the body. I'll keep my promise. Come on. I'll help you pack."

OoOoOo

Booth called late the first evening. "Where are you, Bones?"

"That's an unusual way to start a conversation, Booth. Why are you asking?"

"You're at the Lab aren't you?" he asked. He hated when she was there after hours. Unless she spent the night sleeping on the couch in her office, she would go home alone after dark. It made his pulse race just thinking about it.

Brennan laughed and desire shivered up Booth's spine. His need for her was like a living thing he could barely control. Being apart from her put him on edge.

The conference had gone exactly as he'd predicted and Booth had found interesting ways to entertain himself. Most of them were fantasies involving his partner turned wife. Fantasies he was sure she'd be more than willing to act out with him.

"I'm not at the Lab, Booth." She could hear the concern in his voice. Normally when Booth was out of town, she'd take the opportunity to get more work done after hours. But knowing it would worry him if she did so, Brennan had left with everyone else and gone home.

She never saw herself as someone who'd base decisions on another person's wants and needs. But as she'd realized that night she agreed to stay married, change was inevitable.

If she cared for him - loved him - then she had to consider his needs as well as her own. And in order for him to handle being away from her, Booth needed to know she was safe. To stay at the Lab, knowing that about him, would have been childish. And she really wanted this marriage to work. So she'd give a little, just like Booth did.

Her denial surprised him. After their disagreement, he feared she would use the time away to work through the insecurities that continued to plague her. Booth worked daily to remind her that he wasn't going anywhere. "You aren't?"

"You sound surprised," she pointed out. "I'm actually at your place."

"My place?" Booth echoed, sitting down on the bed in his hotel room. The nondescript carpet and walls didn't usually bother him, but tonight he found them depressing. "Why my place?"

"I can be closer to you here. It doesn't make sense. Geographically my place is several miles closer to your current location."

Leaning back against the pillows, Booth smiled. "What are you wearing?" He knew he shouldn't ask. Bones would take a question like that and run with it. But he missed her and couldn't stop himself.

She laughed again and Booth shifted uncomfortably. His body was reacting strongly to her voice tonight. "I'm wearing one of your t-shirts. That was a silly question."

"Are you feeling better? About us?" he clarified, knowing she wouldn't understand the first question.

In his house, Brennan mirrored his position on the bed. "You ask hard questions. We didn't get a case today. So I stayed inside all day. Didn't even leave for lunch. Which is also ridiculous. I would have been perfectly safe going to lunch."

Booth loosened his tie. "You didn't answer the question, Bones."

"I know," she said quietly. It was a mistake to think he would let it go without an answer. "Yes. It was a moment of doubt. I'm afraid that might happen from time to time. I apologize."

"Don't apologize. We are doing okay. And we are going to be okay. Thank you for staying inside. Listen, Bones, I think we could make this conversation very interesting, but I'm going to hang up before that happens. Because your voice is making me a little crazy tonight," he admitted.

"What are you wearing, Booth?" Her voice was seductive and Booth shifted again.

"My suit," he answered quickly. "And I'm going to continue wearing it until we hang up."

"And what are you going to do after we hang up and you take your suit off?"

"And that's where this conversation is going to end." His voice was tight along with several other things.

"Fine," she said. "You are unusually shy about these things. I thought we could practice phone sex."

Booth almost swallowed his tongue. "We are not practicing anything, Bones." His voice was choked.

She laughed again and for a moment Booth regretted calling her. Perhaps a text would have been better. "You'll be home tomorrow night?" she asked hopefully.

"Yes, two days. Like I promised. I'll see you at your place."

"Booth?"

"Yes?"

"Think about me when you take your clothes off," she said and hung up the phone.

"Damn you, Bones," he muttered tossing the phone toward his feet. His shower was going to be a lot colder than he'd planned.

OoOoOo

He let himself in after midnight. His flight had been delayed twice before finally taking off.

Shedding his clothes down to his underwear, he crawled into bed behind her and pulled her against him. "Sorry I'm so late," he apologized, kissing the back of her neck. "I hate flying."

"Mmmm," she hummed, pressing herself back against him. "We got a case today." she said. Behind her, Booth snaked a hand up her shirt and grabbed the ring she wore. His clenched fist rested on her chest and Bones knew it wouldn't remain there long.

"Interesting case?" he asked, his lips still against her neck.

She moved her head back and forth. "Not really, but they did try to send a different agent to work with me."

Booth snorted. "Try to send? Did it go that poorly?"

Brennan hadn't been sure whether or not to tell him, but decided to be honest. "He asked me out. I have refused to work with him again."

He released the ring to drop his hand to her stomach and pull her tighter against him. The move was possessive but Brennan didn't fight to free herself. "Excuse me?" he said, his voice deepening.

She could feel his arousal pressing into her back and she marveled at her ability to cause such a reaction. "It really wasn't a big deal. I turned him down immediately. You didn't have to worry about me going out into the field without you. After than encounter, I no longer wanted to."

His hand slid back up her skin, brushing her breasts as he began to toy with the chain. "Maybe it's time," he said softly.

Her smaller hand came to wrap itself around his wrist. "To tell people about us?" She sighed. "You are probably right. The longer this goes on, the harder it will be to explain why we didn't share it from the beginning."

His hand pressed itself against her skin trapping the ring there. "Bones?"

"Yes, Booth?"

"Maybe we could talk about this tomorrow? I missed you." His hand drifted lower and she sucked in a breath before letting it out on a soft moan.

Rolling to face him, she ran a hand down his cheek. Her touch was soft and soothed him in a way nothing else ever had. "You have the best ideas, Booth," she whispered. "We can talk tomorrow."


	13. Chapter 13

_Sometimes, you get a chance to act on all the plans you come up with. And other times, fate intervenes and forces your hand…_

They both knew it was time. But as with most serious things, it was taking them a little bit of time to come up with a plan they were both comfortable with.

There was no way to keep this secret much longer. They were leaving and returning to work together too often for it just to be a coincidence. Booth knew that everyone suspected something was up. The marriage part was still going to come as a surprise.

"I'm going home," Booth said. He handed a case file to another agent and gave several directions before leaving the office. Several gave him smug grins before turning quickly away when Booth glared at them.

They knew this wasn't going to last much longer. He had no choice but to inform the FBI and she her colleagues at the Jeffersonian. It was a topic they continued to approach and Booth decided they better figure it out during dinner. Because despite Bones's declaration to just let other people talk, Booth knew it was starting to get out of hand.

And while she couldn't always read other people well, Booth could. He knew exactly what was going to happen when Angela found out.

Brennan thought it was best if they just had everyone over at once and informed them simultaneously. Booth thought that was a terrible idea. He had no desire to be a witness to Angela's reaction on finding out they'd married and kept it secret. He expected a small explosion and didn't want to be anywhere near the woman when it happened.

Give Angela the courtesy of a private conversation. Booth would have a meeting with Cullen and hope that the partnership would be allowed to continue. It was highly unusual for a married couple to be allowed to work together, but Brennan was a consultant, not an actual employee of the FBI. It was semantics and politics, two things Booth hated, but this time it might actually give them an advantage.

He wondered if Bones could be persuaded to continue to only go into the field with him. Their arrangement while he'd left town, while short, had seemed to work well. Perhaps she'd be willing to continue.

They'd had several spirited discussions and despite his frustration at times, he almost looked forward to them. It was fascinating to watch her mind work through things. And finally coming to an agreement usually meant a very private celebration. Sometimes those were held in the bedroom and other times wherever the mood struck them.

Marriage to Bones was turning into everything he'd hoped it would.

Almost.

There was only one thing left to make it perfect for him. But he continued to wait patiently for her to say those three words to him. To acknowledge the love that he was sure she felt for him. Booth trusted she would come to a decision about it, hopefully sooner rather than later.

Because it seemed once his wife made a decision there was no talking her out of it, no matter what happened. It was both a relief and a bit terrifying. She had some interesting ideas on how things worked based on the world she'd lived in before he came along.

In his vehicle, Booth considered the evening ahead. Maybe he should pick up dinner before stopping to get her. Skip all the meal preparation and head toward his favorite portion of the evening.

Bones loved sex. It was a good thing he did too. Especially with her. Now only with her. No complaints there.

He was humming to himself, thinking about the evening ahead, as he approached the green light.

If he'd been paying better attention, Booth might have noticed the car barreling toward him from the opposite direction. Instead, he had a moment of fear for Bones, and one of deep regret, before there was nothing at all.

OoOoOo

"What are you still doing here, Dr. B.?" Hodgins asked. "You've usually gone home by now." He was trying to leave as well, but he was stumped by several tests he'd run during the day and wanted to give them a second look.

Brennan's eyes were worried. "Booth was supposed to pick me up. He called an hour ago to say he was on his way. And he's not answering his phone."

She'd been looking at apartments for the two of them and had found one she liked. Brennan had taken the time to make an appointment to see it in a couple of days. It should have been overwhelming, making so many life changing decisions at once, but it felt right.

"I'm sure he's fine," Hodgins said. "But I could make some phone calls for you, if you want me to."

Fingering the gold chain, Brennan was careful to keep the ring hidden from Hodgins. "Perhaps," she said slowly. But her phone rang and she turned away from him. "I'm sure that's him telling me the SUV broke down."

"This is Temperance Brennan," Hodgins heard her say and he paused in the door. Dr. Brennan would have laughed at him, but something felt off and he hesitated to leave her alone. Her voice and greeting wouldn't have been that formal if it was Booth on the phone. She turned slowly toward him, her face going as pale as her eyes.

"I'll get my keys," Hodgins said before she'd finished the call. He recognized the look of panic in Brennan's eyes. He gave a brief thought to what could have happened, but pushed the speculation aside. In the end, it didn't really matter. "Where is he?" he asked, meeting her as she hurried out of her office.

"It was Cullen's secretary," she said shortly. "He's been in some sort of accident." Shaking her head, she reached up to finger the chain again. "I'm apparently listed on his emergency contact information at the FBI." Something he'd never told her. "I need to go but I don't have a car."

Hodgins noticed the movement, as they all had the last few weeks. There'd been no explanation as to where the chain came from or why she never took it off. They'd all commented on how careful she was to never let it fall from her shirt. Each had theories, but none of them knew for sure.

Hodgins was sure now it had something to do with Booth.

"I'll drive you," Hodgins said. "You can fill me in on the way."

OoOoOo

"I'm sorry, Dr. Brennan," the nurse said apologetically. "But it is immediate family only. If you just wait over there." The nurse pointed at the chairs to their left.

"Come on, Dr. B," Hodgins said, putting a supportive hand on her arm. "When someone from the FBI gets here, they'll explain it. They just don't have what they need to know you are his emergency contact. I'm sure Booth's boss is on the way with what you need. It won't take long."

She shrugged his hand off. It hadn't been their plan. None of this had. They'd married and neither could remember it. Kept that marriage a secret for as long as they dared. But it was too late to worry about plans now. She was immediate family. "I'm his wife," Brennan said, reaching beneath her shirt to free the chain. A sharp tug broke it and she pulled the ring free, putting it on the appropriate finger. "Agent Booth is my husband and I demand information on his condition."

There was more than one way for a person to walk away. It wasn't always by choice when a person left. And she had her memories, just as she'd told herself she would when Jasper the pig had been clutched in her fist.

But this wasn't what she wanted. And it pained her to think that their time together could end before it had even begun. She now understood how Booth felt when she'd been buried alive. How had he ever managed it?

Wasn't it ridiculous she'd been so afraid to let him in that she'd almost let him go? Now, she'd risk it all, their partnership and the anger of their friends, in order to make sure he was okay.

Hodgins looked down at her hand and back to her face again as the nurse scurried away. Not a single one of them had guessed that. The ring fit her finger perfectly. He scrambled to put all the pieces together, realizing he didn't have many to begin with. His mouth opened and closed several times in shock.

Brennan could see the nurse talking to another employee and took a calming breath before looking at Hodgins.

"Holy shit, Dr. Brennan. That's quite a story. Where'd you get the ring?" Because there was no way that's what was going on. Angela would explode and not in a good way.

She said nothing continuing to stare at Hodgins, watching the truth dawn in his eyes. "Not a story?" he whispered. "You two are actually married. Oh, Dr. B, I have so many questions right now."

"Later, Dr. Hodgins." Then she sighed. "When you see Angela, tell her I'm sorry for not telling her before this."

"No, I don't think it is a story," said a voice behind them. Both turned to see Booth's boss. "You really married him?"

Brennan squared her shoulders. Nothing about this had gone as they'd planned. And the beginning of it hadn't been planned at all. "Yes, we are married. Legally. There is paperwork to prove it. I can give you the information to trace it."

"Oh, I'm sure there is," Cullen said calmly. "And I do work for the FBI. I think I can probably find it without your help." He wasn't sure what was more amusing. The reactions crossing Hodgins's face were fun to watch as was the idea the Agent Booth and Dr. Brennan had married each other.

In secret. And they'd managed to keep it that way.

There were so many problems with this scenario he didn't know where to start. Then considered the woman standing in front of him. The fierce way she stared at him would have intimidated a different man. But a smart man, and he was one, knew better than to stand between her and Agent Booth.

"We need to talk," he said to Brennan before flashing his ID at the returning nurse. "Let this woman in to see her husband."

"How bad is it?" Hodgins asked Cullen as Brennan followed the nurse into a different part of the hospital.

"Them being secretly married. Not as bad as it could be," Cullen admitted. But it was still going to be a bit of a scandal. He shrugged internally. Nothing he couldn't handle. "Their solve rate and the fact that they managed to work together and keep this secret will both be marks in favor of sustaining the partnership."

But his eyes darkened as he stared at the doors Brennan had disappeared behind. "The accident? Booth is still unconscious is my understanding. I was called when they ran the plate on his government issued SUV." Cullen shook his head. "Do you have friends you can call?"

"Yeah," Hodgins said.

"Call them," Cullen ordered gruffly. "She's going to need them. Booth will wake up. But she'll need someone to bully her into taking care of herself if it takes awhile until he does."

OoOoOo

"Your husband wasn't wearing his seatbelt," the doctor said. His voice was weary and Brennan sympathized.

"I could never get him to wear it," she said. They stood outside Booth's room, watching him through the glass. It had been an argument she'd never managed to win. And it wasn't for lack of trying.

"Surprisingly, his injuries aren't that bad. He broke his wrist. His car spun, but didn't roll, so that helped him."

"But he's still unconscious," Brennan pointed out. She worried that she'd find herself here eventually. Booth always risked getting shot in his job. She hadn't imagined it would be something as simple as a car accident.

"His head hit the window on the driver's side. At least that's what I figure from looking at the injury. The good news is there is no bleeding or swelling of his brain. He just hasn't come back yet."

"Head injuries are a funny thing," Brennan said softly. She insisted on seeing the scans and agreed with the assessment of Booth's injuries. "Sometimes people wake up right away and other times they don't wake up at all."

"I don't think we should go there yet, Dr. Brennan. His vital signs are good and it's only been a couple of hours. Give his brain time to rest. In addition, the paramedics indicated he woke up once in the ambulance asking about his bones. They assumed he meant the pain from his broken wrist. I am sure at this time tomorrow, we will be having a very different conversation. Go in there and talk to him," he encouraged. "It will help."

"Thank you," she said. It was a waste of time to correct their assumption about his question. Booth hadn't been asking about his wrist. He'd been worried about her.

Her footsteps were quiet as she entered the room and pulled chair up next to him. His pulse rate was slightly elevated.

"Hey, Booth. You need to wake up. I did some crazy things. You would be surprised. It's totally not like me. Apparently worry for you makes me a little less rational."

It was subtle but as soon as she started to talk, his pulse rate slowed. Watching the number, Brennan wondered how much he could understand. Knowing their secret was out should have made it go up, not down.

She brushed her fingers through his hair, studying his face for a response. Not seeing one, she picked up his hand in both of hers. The other was encased in a brace. "I'm wearing your ring. Our ring," she corrected, rubbing his fingers on it. "Hodgins was there when I slammed it on my finger. So was Director Cullen. It seems our secret is out. If this was your plan, I'm sure we could have come up with a better one."

It felt weird to just stare at him, but she wanted so desperately to see a sign that he was in there and could hear her words. As long as she spoke, his pulse rate remained steady. "I'm not even upset about that. It's kind of a relief. I couldn't figure out a way to tell everyone and now I don't have to. Neither do you. The two men out there will take care of that for us."

Brennan cast a nervous look toward the door. "I wonder how that's going."

OoOoOo

"Say it again, Dr. Hodgins," Cam ordered. She had to have heard it wrong the first time.

The drive to the hospital had been completed in record time for her and Angela. Hodgins wished he had better news on Booth's condition. Instead, he had to tell the women that not only was Booth still unconscious, he had married Brennan without any of them knowing.

"Booth and Brennan are married. The gold chain she's been wearing around her neck had a ring on it." Hodgins opened his fist to show them the broken chain. He'd retrieved it from where Brennan had left it at the nurse's station. "She pulled it from her shirt and broke it. She's wearing the ring now."

Hodgins watched them try to make sense of the information. "The ring fit her like it was made for her. And knowing Booth, it probably was.'

Cam lowered herself into a chair and looked over to see Angela do the same. "When did this happen?"

Hodgins shrugged. "No idea. But they've kept it secret from everyone. Even that guy over there in the suit."

Looking to where Hodgins indicated, Cam felt even sicker. "That's Director Cullen. Booth's boss."

"I figured that out. He said Booth and Brennan would probably be able to keep the partnership going, considering they'd managed to do so even when married. You okay, Ang," he asked, sitting down next to her. "Dr. B. wanted me to tell you she was sorry."

Angela shook her head. "She didn't tell me. I'm her best friend and she didn't tell me they were married. I knew there was something there, but I didn't push." She reached over and patted Hodgins's hand. "I was worried about you and not about her. I asked her about that damn necklace, but she was so uncomfortable, I stopped. I thought it was something from her father."

"We didn't tell anyone, Angela," Brennan said. They'd been so engrossed in their own shock, none of them noticed her coming back.

"He's not awake yet," she said, raising her voice as Cullen came toward them. "But I think he can hear me. His heart rate goes up if I quit talking for longer than a few minutes. I told him I'd be right back. I can't stay out here."

Cullen opened his mouth, but Brennan held up her hand. There was no way to ease into this conversation. Thankfully, being blunt was something she excelled at. "I can make this quick. We married in Las Vegas. It was…not planned," she finally settled on. "But we decided to try and make it work. Well, Booth did," she said with a sad smile. "It took me a little longer to come to that decision."

Brennan knew all four were doing math in their head. "When Booth wakes up, we can talk about the partnership,' she said directly to Cullen. "I won't worry about that now."

He waved his hand. "As far as I'm concerned the partnership is safe. Go back to Booth."

"Thanks everyone." Reaching down she squeezed Angela's shoulder in apology. "I'll come out when I can."

"A whole month," Angela said as she walked away. "They've been married for a whole month." She shook her head. "How do I miss something like that? I told her to pay attention to how Booth looked at her. It's always been obvious he was in love with her. But married? How'd he ever talk her into it?"

"Maybe, he didn't," Hodgins offered. "She said the wedding wasn't planned and they were in Vegas."

Angela turned angry eyes toward him. "Booth wouldn't get her drunk and take advantage. He'd never live with himself if he hurt her. And Brennan wouldn't stay with him if he had." She shook her head again. "Why wouldn't she trust me with that?"

Hodgins shrugged. "Dr. Brennan is pretty private about her feelings. I'm sure it had nothing to do with you, Ang. It probably had more to do with how she was feeling." He fell silent a moment before adding one more thought. "Maybe they were both drunk."

That, Angela could see. "She did say that the two of them decided to try and make it work. And she has been happy the last few weeks." She turned to stare toward where Brennan had disappeared. "But why not tell me after they decided to stay married?"

Taking a deep breath, Hodgins tried. "If, their marriage started that way and if Booth still had to convince her to take a chance on them, I'm sure they wanted the privacy to figure things out. It had to be a hell of a shock to go from single partners to married partners. That's a lot of changes for a woman who doesn't change quickly. I'm sure it had nothing to do with you, Angela. Don't think about it that way."

"It explains a lot for me," Cam said, thinking about when Brennan and Hodgins were buried alive. "So many little things I just couldn't make sense of."

"Yes," Angela agreed considering what Hodgins had said. Now that the initial shock was wearing off, she was concerned for Brennan and Booth. "He needs to wake up so I can yell at both of them."

OoOoOo

Fifteen minutes after her brief visit to the waiting room, Cam appeared in Booth's room. She handed a bottle of water to Brennan who opened it and took a sip.

"His heart rate goes up if I quit talking," Brennan said. "So I haven't stopped. Thank you for the water."

Cam nodded at the thanks and stood at the end of the bed. "He needs to wear his seatbelt," she said.

"Is that really what you came in here to talk about?" Brennan asked, looking up at her. "Or am I in some sort of trouble because I married him and didn't share it with you? Any of you?"

Cam laughed softly. "I forget how bold you are sometimes. Neither you or Booth owe me an explanation. But it might save you some trouble with Angela if I have the basic facts to give her. You gave us just enough that we've made some assumptions."

"I expected her and not you," Brennan admitted.

"She's angry. At herself," Cam clarified, seeing the guilt pass across Brennan's face. "She's angry that she wasn't a better friend and didn't try to find out what was going on with you. And she's wondering if you not telling her had something to do with trusting her."

"I'm not sure I knew what was going on," Brennan admitted. Reaching out, she took Booth's hand in hers. Squeezing until her knuckles went white, she finally relaxed her grip slightly when there wasn't a reaction from him. But the longer she went without speaking, the more his heart rate began to climb on the monitor.

"Not telling Angela had nothing to do with her and everything to do with me not trusting the decisions I was making."

"I see what you mean," Cam said, watching the numbers. "Do you remember the wedding?"

Brennan's eyes darted to hers and away again. "I recall portions of it," she said softly. "I think Booth remembers more than I do. Sometimes I wish I didn't work with people that are so smart," Brennan said. "Because I think you've correctly figured out how we got married."

"Maybe that's the way it needed to be. I'm not sure the two of you would have ever admitted your feelings for each other otherwise." Cam looked at how tightly Brennan held his hand and felt no regret for not being the one at his side. "You make him happy, Dr. Brennan. I'm happy for both of you, no matter how it started. We all are."

"Thanks, Cam. He just needs to wake up. There are a few things I need to tell him."

"He will. I'll go give everyone an update. If you need something, send a text. Cullen flashing his badge around seems to get a person whatever they want around here."

Brennan watched Cam leave and shook her head. So they'd all figured out she and Booth had been drunk. In the end, Brennan decided it probably didn't matter how it started, given how it had ended up. "Everyone is worried about you, Booth. Just open your eyes. I have something I want to say to you," Brennan said when she was alone with him again. And while he didn't open his eyes, his pulse slowed slightly, easing Brennan's mind. He could hear her and knew she was there.

"But I won't say it to you when I'm not sure you can hear me. We missed our marriage. I'm not letting you miss this."

Booth's eyelids twitched and she ran a hand down his cheek. There was going to be a bruise there. "Come on, Booth. Fight your way out of there."

Did she think he wasn't? Annoyed that Bones might think he wasn't trying to get back to her, Booth focused hard.

And opened his eyes to see her blue eyes looking down at him.

"Hey there," she said with a tearful laugh. Leaning, she pressed her lips to his.

"Say it," he ordered. His voice was soft and he swallowed before trying again. "Say what you were going to say to me," he ordered, trying to put more force behind his words.

He'd been floating and he hadn't liked it. But in all the black he'd been able to hear her voice and followed it like a beacon in the dark.

"I knew you could hear me," Brennan said. But she bent close to his ear so the words were for him and him alone.

"I love you, Booth."


	14. Chapter 14

_Since I have this story completed and I personally hate waiting to read the end, I'm going to post the rest of it today and tomorrow. Only good stuff from here..._

_And a whole bunch of you were worried about Angela's reaction..._

_OoOoOo_

"He's awake," Brennan announced. She felt like she could breath again and her smile was both relieved and tired. "We are staying tonight and then going home tomorrow."

If felt like the air had been let out of a balloon as the sighs of relief were released. "He's okay?" Cam asked.

"Fine. He doesn't remember the accident, but given the nature of the injury, that isn't a surprise," Brennan explained.

Angela rose to her feet and approached her friend. Her hand was steady and she reached out and took Brennan's left hand in hers. "It's beautiful," she said. The tears were evident her voice and she swallowed hard before looking at the woman before her. "I'm sorry, Brennan."

"Oh, Angela," she said before reaching forward to pull the woman into a hug. Angela, delighted that her friend would initiate the contact first, hugged her back. "There is nothing to be sorry for."

"You love him?" she asked, pulling back. "Even with how it started? You're happy with how it turned out?"

Brennan looked slightly embarrassed. "If it's okay with the three of you, we'd like you to keep that part about how it started to ourselves. We trust you to keep our secret. And yes, I love him. We are both very happy with how it turned out," Brennan said.

"We missed all the fun stuff," Angela complained. But she was laughing as she said it. "The bridal shower and the parties and the reception."

And the wedding, Brennan added in her head, but she didn't say it. She and Booth had missed it too. She trusted them to keep that secret for her. Angela would hear the whole story a different day. Brennan's fears and her struggles. And her hopes too.

"Go home, Angela. Maybe we can have a dinner or something when Booth is better."

"Count on it," Angela promised.

Brennan, watching them go, remembered her realization of how Booth had changed her life. Friends were a strange, but wonderful complication. Brennan was thankful she had them.

She turned to see Director Cullen watching her. "Director," she greeted. "Booth is awake."

"I heard that part," he said, motioning toward the chairs. But he'd walked away and missed the rest of it. Honestly, he'd done it on purpose. Better not to know how they'd managed to end up married. Couldn't give the answers if you didn't know them to begin with.

Brennan hesitated before sitting. Booth hadn't been happy about staying and she didn't want to leave him longer than she had to. "I made some discreet phone calls and found your marriage record," Cullen said. "I have to say that I'm impressed with how well you kept this quiet."

"Booth and I have been given the security clearances we have for a reason," she pointed out. "We know how to keep our own secrets."

He'd never let Booth know it, but Cullen really liked this woman. Her honesty was refreshing. "You do," he agreed, swallowing the laugh. "What I need to know is if you want to keep it that way."

Brennan looked down at the ring she hadn't worn before that day. Now she couldn't imagine taking it off. "I think that time has passed. I would like people to know that we chose each other."

Cullen nodded. "There are some forms you will have to sign. When Booth is cleared, he can bring them to you. I will run interference on the rest. Once the surprise dies down and you two get back to work, there won't be many complaints." And he'd deal with any that came from above.

Brennan tilted her head and looked at him. Cullen was no more unnerved by the stare than Booth was. "Is there something you want to ask?" he encouraged her.

"I'm wondering why you are making this so easy for us. I'm sure what we did broke a lot of rules, at least for Booth."

Cullen rose and waited while Brennan did the same. "Agent Booth is a good investigator. I'm not in a hurry to replace him. Besides that," he shrugged, "I like both of you. But don't think that gets you some sort of advantage with me. In fact, if you ever repeat I said it, I'll deny it. I'll probably make things more difficult because I like you. Don't want people think I have favorites."

"Understood. Thank you," she said. Brushing past him, she hurried down the hall to return to Booth.

Cullen, watching her go, silently wished both of them good luck. A marriage between the two of them would never be boring.

OoOoOo

"You awake, Bones?" he asked softly. Booth rested in the hospital bed, despite his insistence that he was fine and could go home with Bones. Now that everyone knew the status of their relationship, there was no worry about giving away their secret.

But the doctors had refused. Booth had argued until Brennan had refused as well. One night in the hospital wouldn't hurt him, she'd decided, just to make sure he was okay. He'd been prepared to keep arguing until he saw the worry in her eyes. So, he'd agreed as long as she could stay the night with him.

Compromise. If she was willing to stay in the Lab when he was out of town, he could stay in the hospital for one night. For her, he'd even try to be a better patient than he usually was.

It was three in the morning in the private room she'd insisted on paying for. Normally, that sort of thing would bother him, but he wanted to be alone with her.

He needed her and wasn't ashamed to admit it, at least to himself. He needed to know she was close. That all he had to do was reach out his hand or call her name and she'd be by his side.

Still not entirely sure how everything had happened, his head spun and not from the accident. Only weeks ago he'd been single, trying to pretend he wasn't in love with her. Now, she wore her ring on her finger making it clear she belonged to him.

But not property, he corrected himself. Never property. Would she marry him again? A ceremony they both recalled clearly would be nice. Something to think about after he got out of here.

When she didn't answer, he squinted until he could see her sleeping in the chair they'd brought in for her. It didn't look very comfortable, but she hadn't complained. Bones had curled up into it and watched him. For signs of a catastrophic brain injury he was sure. He didn't have any brain injury, but there was something he needed to tell her.

Bones loved him. It seemed more of a miracle than he deserved. He managed to come through a nasty car accident relatively unscathed and Bones loved him. If her saying those words hadn't fried his brain, there was no way an accident would.

"You okay, Booth?" she asked and Booth rolled his head toward her. Her blue eyes reflected the light from the hall and gave her an otherworldly look in the darkness.

He wanted to tell her how beautiful she was. How, after haunting his dreams for years, he couldn't believe he could open his eyes at three in the morning and see her next to him.

"I'm good. This cast is itchy already," he complained. After regaining consciousness they'd replaced the brace with a hard cast. It would keep him chained to his desk until it came off and that annoyed him. He'd meant it when he informed Bones he was her shield. How was he supposed to protect her from behind a desk?

"I'll be fine, Booth," she said, reading the worry on his face. "Does your head hurt?"

He brushed his fingers against the knot and winced. Before turning out the lights, he'd looked at himself in the mirror. An ugly bruise was making its way down the side of his face. Booth could only imagine how bad it looked now. "A little," he admitted, knowing Bones would be angry if he tried to hide it. "Nothing I can't handle. But don't turn on the lights."

"Did you need something? I heard you call my name."

"Yeah. Something I need to tell you. I remember," he blurted out.

She sat up but her eyes still had that eerie look to them. Booth wondered if his head injury had done something to his vision. But nothing else in the room glowed the same way and he figured it was just a trick of the light. He supposed, if he really needed to know, Bones would be able to tell him.

"You remember the accident?" she asked. "I'm surprised given the severity of your head injury."

"It wasn't that bad," he argued. Catching her annoyed look at his argument, Booth shot her a grin. "But that's not what I remember. I remember our wedding. Or more of it than I have told you."

"Why didn't you say something?" she asked. Rising from her own uncomfortable resting spot, she came and sat on the edge of his bed. Gentle fingers ran down the side of his face. "You have a nasty bruise."

Without the light in her face, her eyes returned to normal and Booth hissed out a sigh. "I figured," he said. "They aren't going to let me leave the office for a while anyway with the cast."

Brennan nodded, knowing that he wasn't going to even be at work for a few days. But it didn't seem like the right time to break that to him. "So what do you remember? Because I never recalled much of it and it makes me a little sad."

"Really?" he asked. Reaching up, he grabbed her hand and kissed the tips of her fingers.

"Really." Taking his hand, she put it on her bent knee and placed hers on top of it. "I'm in love with you," she said, the words coming out easier than she'd ever imagined they would. "I married you. I wish I could remember it."

"I don't have all of it. Probably not even half of it. And what I do remember doesn't make a lot of sense. More like short scenes all jumbled together in the wrong order. But we were drinking. We were drinking a lot."

"I got that part, Booth." Threading her fingers between his, she enjoyed the strength she felt in his grip. And marveled at the tenderness those same hands could show. "We both had quite a bit to drink. I don't need clear memories to know that happened. And our friends figured it out without me saying the words."

"You asked me what I thought would have happened if we'd left together that night. After our first case. When you got in the taxi without me," Booth continued.

She tilted her head. There was a look on his face that she couldn't interpret, something that was becoming less and less common. It looked almost like guilt. "I imagine you said something about how it wouldn't have lasted because of your gambling and the way you were living your life. That's what you told me in my office that day."

The laugh he gave raised the hair on her arms. Pulling his hand from beneath hers, he put it in his lap. She reached out with both hands and pulled it back. Surprised by the move, he didn't fight to free himself. "I told you that I thought we'd be married. Happily married."

"You were drunk, Booth. We both were." Brennan studied his face in the dim light from the hall. "Do you blame yourself for what happened? Do you wish we weren't married now?"

"No," he said quickly, afraid that she would think he was changing his mind. "God, no, Bones. Don't even think it. But yes, I blame how everything happened on me. What I said." His eyes shifted from hers. "I said a couple of other things, too. Things that were kind of insulting. You took them as a challenge. I'd rather not repeat them, if that's okay with you."

"Don't look away from me, Booth," she ordered softly. Whatever he didn't want to repeat was bothering him, she could see it. But she didn't remember it and quite frankly didn't care. But it was obvious he did.

His eyes flew back to hers and what he saw there had him swallowing thickly. "Sorry, Bones," he whispered. He'd expected anger, but what he got was the farthest thing from it.

"For what?" she asked. "I can guess you made some comment about my fear of emotions. That I was afraid of marriage or love and had missed out on something great with you." His eyes widened slightly and she knew she was making sense. "So, going with that line of thought, I decided to prove you wrong by daring you to marry me while we were in Vegas. Am I close? Neither of us like to turn away from a challenge."

Alarmed by how well and how quickly her brain put things together, he nodded slowly. Fast movements made his head hurt more. "The part about what I said is close. The rest is fuzzy. I don't know how you responded. I shouldn't have said it. I didn't mean it. You have more heart than anyone I know."

"For the sake of argument, I'm sure I'm right. So as far as I can see, we are both to blame. Or we have both of us to thank for this wonderful mess we tangled ourselves up in. One I have no intention of freeing myself from."

He reached up to cup her face in his hand. "I don't deserve you," he said.

"Of course you do," she disagreed. Looking over toward the chair, she sighed. "You need to get some rest."

Moving as far over on the bed as he dared, Booth rolled slightly toward her, careful to keep the bruise on his face from resting on the pillow. There was just enough room for Brennan to tuck herself next to him, one leg thrown over both of his and her head on his shoulder.

With her hand on his chest, she could feel the steady beat of his heart. She tipped her head back, catching the light to make her eyes do that crazy glow thing again. "Don't scare me like this again. At least for a year a two."

"I'll do my best, Bones." It was a promise he'd do his best to keep, even knowing he had no control over what fate would throw his way. But the almost promise was enough for Bones as her breathing slowed and she fell asleep next to him.

"Thank you," he whispered, a prayer to whoever was out there listening. Pressing a kiss to the top of her head, he closed his eyes and fell asleep with her.

OoOoOo

"This isn't your place," Booth said as they pulled up to the curb. "I thought I was staying with you."

He'd finally been discharged from the hospital, a process that always took way too long in his opinion. Then there was the ride in the wheel chair, which was ridiculous considering it wasn't his leg that was broken.

Now, with his head and wrist both aching in a dull way that was just irritating, Bones had brought him to a place he didn't recognize.

And she was driving in her little eco friendly car that he could barely fit in.

Turning toward him, her eyes moved from the bruise on his face to his broken wrist and back again. "I know you don't feel well, Booth. But I made this appointment before your accident. It will only take a few minutes. But if you aren't well enough, I can reschedule."

He bristled at the idea that Bones thought he couldn't handle an appointment. "I'm fine," he insisted. "We can keep your appointment."

She gave him one of those endless stares, but this one he understood. "I'm fine, Bones. Let's just get this done. Whatever it is."

Booth extracted himself very carefully from the car, afraid that he would stand too fast and hit his head. "There's no room to move in this thing," he complained. "And we sit too low to the ground."

Brennan rolled her eyes. "Glad to see you managed to be such a good patient at the hospital. It's clear you're done with that attitude."

She walked close enough for Booth to reach out and grab her with his good hand. "I'm sorry, Bones. I'm being an ass," he said. "This appointment is clearly important to you."

He dropped his hand when her eyes drifted to where it still held his arm. "It's important to you, too," she said.

Her comment raising his curiosity, Booth followed her. "Is this a new building?" he asked, following her inside. He noted the security in the lobby and at the elevator. "It seems like a safe place."

"Of course it is," Brennan said, leading him into the elevator. She pressed the button for the fourth floor and looked over at him. "How's your head?"

He wore jeans and a sweatshirt with the hood pulled up to cover his face a little. The bruise was turning all sorts of interesting colors and Booth was trying to avoid the looks he knew he'd get.

"It aches," he grumbled and seeing her concerned look gave her a small smile. "I've been hurt worse, Bones, as you know. I can handle it."

Booth watched her lips press together and knew she was probably ready to turn around and take him back to her place. But the elevator dinged and he grabbed her hand to pull her after him as soon as the doors opened.

On the fourth floor Brennan led them the end of the hall where a woman was waiting. "Good morning, Dr. Brennan," she greeted. "I've unlocked the place for you. I'll give you a few minutes to look around before I come in to answer any questions."

Booth waited until the door closed behind them before he turned to her. "What is this place, Bones?"

She sighed and allowed him to see the nervousness she'd been hiding. "I thought it might be our place," she said softly. Despite the low level, her voice echoed slightly in the empty space.

"Our place?" Booth said, looking around. The kitchen was modern without being cold and there were plenty of bare walls for them to decorate. He walked toward the windows in the living area, noting there was a park in walking distance.

"It's not a house, but I thought we had time for that. But if that's what you want, we can keep looking," she offered. "I just thought this might be a place for us for the next couple of years. While we figure out this marriage thing."

"I can't afford this, Bones," he said. He turned back toward her and crossed his arms. The position was awkward with the cast and he finally gave up, letting his arms fall back to his sides. He hated to see the spark of hope flicker in her eyes, but he had his limits. There was no way she was paying for their home. He would contribute.

The hope in her eyes turned to hurt. "I thought this was a partnership, Booth. That's what you said. Alone you can't afford this, but together, we can. I thought that's what you wanted." She sighed, not hiding her disappointment. Her look was wistful as she looked around the apartment. "We can keep looking."

Booth sighed to himself. He was going to have to change his limits if it kept the hurt look out of her eyes. "We can afford this?" he asked. "You aren't saying that to make me feel better?"

Her face brightened. "I wouldn't lie about that, Booth. I know how you feel about it. Yes, we can afford this. If we contribute equally. Or if you let me contribute slightly more than half. Only slightly," she emphasized, seeing the look in his eyes. "I can show you the math I did, if you want to see it."

Booth looked at her and saw the love. She wanted him to like this. "All the steps at once again." He smiled as he said it so Bones knew he wasn't annoyed. "Guess you want us to move in together? Into a place that's ours?"

She tilted her head. "Isn't that what you want?"

Coming toward her, he took her hand, twisting the ring on her finger. "I want what makes you happy. If this makes you happy, it makes me happy too." He looked around. "It looks like a nice place. We could be make a life here."

"It only has two bedrooms, which makes it more affordable. But it had a nice tub. And two bathrooms."

Booth followed her around the place, not really focusing on her words. He could hear her excitement and he let it wash over him. "Just tell her we'll take it," he said when she paused.

Brennan looked up. "You need to go home, Booth. I've kept you out too long." She didn't like the pale look to his features, which only made the bruise stand out more. "We can keep looking another day."

"I'm fine," he argued. "When can we move in?" Yes, his head hurt, and his cast was annoying. But Bones had found a place for them to live together. "I like it, you being brave about us."

"I don't want to wait, Booth. I almost died, then you did. If we wait too long, we might miss something. But are you sure?"

He shrugged. "You like it. I like it. It will be our place. What's not to like?"

"I love you," she said suddenly. "I don't know why I waited so long to admit it."

"I love you, too. Let's start our life together."


	15. Chapter 15

_Well readers, this is the end. I knew how this was going to end from the very first chapter, but I had a lot of fun getting here. I hope all the readers out there feel the same. _

_Thank you for the reviews, the follows, the favorites and the private messages I received. It's always nice to know there are people out there who are enjoying your work._

_Until next time…_

_OoOoOo_

Three months later…

"This is the place?" Hodgins asked as they exited the car. He looked toward Booth and caught the nod of the other man's head.

"Yeah, this is it." Booth looked at the building and shook his head. "It could have been worse."

In the bright sunlight, the building looked even less romantic than Booth remembered. Still, it was tastefully decorated and the flowers out front were well tended.

But Hodgins disagreed with Booth's appraisal. "I like it. It's quaint. Not something you'd expect to find in a place like this. I'm impressed. You somehow managed to find a nice place even when you had no idea what was going on." He gave Booth a grin of approval.

Booth shot him a glance and decided the man meant what he said. And Booth did agree with him. It was a cute place, even if it wasn't the church wedding he'd always thought he'd have.

"Do you think he'll remember you? It's been a few months and I imagine there are a lot of customers in a place like this."

Booth, remembering the panic of that day several months before, gave a small smile. "I think he will. Let's get inside before we melt."

"Good plan," Hodgins agreed. "It will make it easier to keep my promise to Dr. Brennan if you're inside."

Pausing with his hand on the door, Booth looked at Hodgins. "What promise?"

Hodgins shrugged. "Under no circumstances was I to leave you alone until the two of you were together again. She didn't explain, but I promised. It didn't make a lot of sense, it isn't like you're going to leave her at the altar. You are already married."

It made perfect sense to Booth and filled him with a sense of peace. She wouldn't leave him a second time and wanted him to know it. "Bones has her own idea of how things should work," he responded, not explaining further.

It was early in the day, but the heat was already oppressive. Both men were hit by a blast of cold air as they pushed the door open.

From the back, Booth watched the interior door open. He'd followed a stranger through it on that lonely day when he wasn't sure how he'd get out of Vegas in one piece.

Now he was back with all his pieces in place. Even the ones he hadn't realized he was missing.

The recognition dawned immediately in Greg's eyes. "Seeley Booth!" he cried, hurrying toward the two men. He grabbed Booth's hand and pumped it enthusiastically. "I usually don't see people twice in this place."

"Hi, Greg. This is my friend Jack Hodgins," Booth introduced.

"Jack," Greg said. He shook his hand and looked at the two men curiously. "There's no ring on your hand, Seeley. Do I dare ask how everything turned out?"

"That's kind of why we're here," Booth said. He shifted from one foot to the other. "Since you remember me, I assume you remember my wedding."

Greg nodded. "I've thought about you often during the last couple of months, wondering how things turned out. Sometimes your cases make the news, but you've kept things pretty quiet. My wife and I checked."

"Well," Booth said, running and hand along the back of his neck. "Bones and I never did remember. And we were wondering if you'd be willing to do the whole thing a second time. If you have time."

Greg's smile was delighted as he called back to his wife. "Gwen? Come out here. We're closing for part of the day."

"You don't have to do that," Booth said. "We don't expect you to turn away other people for us." But Greg waved his hand and turned off the sign that indicated weddings were being performed.

"Yes, I have to do that," Greg disagreed. "You have no idea how happy this makes me. We see so many people come through here. Sober. Drunk. Happy. Annoyed. We never find out what happens. But every now again someone comes through and you can't help but think about them. You loved that girl, a blind man would have seen it. I'm so glad it worked out for you."

Hodgins snorted and Booth shot him a look. "We all knew you were in love with her, Booth. Some guy you barely knew could see it. I can't believe you ever thought the rest of us couldn't."

Greg nodded his agreement. "Where is your pretty bride?"

"She's with my girlfriend," Hodgins offered. "They are getting ready."

Impossibly, Greg's blue eyes brightened even more. "Getting ready?" He glanced at Booth. "You can't get married in that," he said, motioning to Booth's suit. "Come on in the back. I have something that's more suitable. It belongs to my son, but it should work for you."

"I'm fine," Booth argued.

Greg stared at him. "Your wife is getting ready in what is probably some sort of wedding gown. You need a tux. I have a tux. Stop being stubborn. If you came all this way to have a wedding you remember, at least make it worth remembering."

Hodgins sounded like he was choking as he tried not to laugh. "Just go, Booth. He's not wrong."

"Fine," Booth grumbled. "I imagine you have something else that needs fixing while I'm back there?" Booth asked, following him.

"The only thing that needs fixing today is you," Greg said pointedly, closing the door behind them.

oOoOoOo

"Do you think this is okay?" Brennan asked, turning to get a good look in the mirror. "I didn't have a lot of time to shop and I wanted something simple."

Angela brushed quickly at her eyes. "It's beautiful, Bren. Thank you so much for letting me come with you."

Turning, Brennan looked at her friend. "Are those happy tears? And isn't a bride supposed to have her best friend with her on her wedding day?"

Her second wedding day, but Brennan didn't mind. She'd agreed happily to Booth's idea and to inviting Angela and Hodgins to come with them.

It seemed appropriate to go back to where it all began and start it over again. This time without the doubts that had plagued her. Brennan would be able to enjoy the moment without fear. She knew her future was with Booth and that was enough for her.

It was a monumental test of strength for Booth to return to Las Vegas. But Brennan had made sure he'd never be alone. They'd flown into an airport in Arizona to avoid any temptation and after the ceremony, they'd be returning there to enjoy a long overdue honeymoon.

"Yes, to both questions," Angela said. "And your dress is beautiful."

It fit Brennan perfectly, the lace falling to a train behind her. The back was low exposing a lot of skin in the area Booth loved to put his hand. Considering the heat, there were thin straps, instead of sleeves.

Angela knew the entire story now, of a wedding she couldn't remember and Brennan abandoning Booth in Vegas. Of the fear that had almost kept her from allowing her to feel all of this and the love that now overpowered it all.

"He's going to love it," Angela said, straightening the train behind her. Looking down at her phone as it vibrated in her hand, Angela smiled. "Our ride is here."

Brennan took a deep breath and gave herself a final look in the mirror. "Do you have everything?"

Angela double checked, even though she already knew the answer. "I have it. Come on, Bren. Let's get you married. Again."

OoOoOo

"Why are you so nervous?" Hodgins asked Booth. "It's not like you haven't done this before."

Booth glared, but didn't respond. Sure, he'd done this before, but this time he actually knew it was happening.

The tux Greg stored for his son was a little tight in the shoulders, but it fit well enough. Brennan's ring was in his pocket. She'd slipped it off that morning and handed it to him. She wanted the memory of him slipping it on her finger during the ceremony.

"They're here," Greg whispered. Booth turned toward the door and waited impatiently, reminding himself to breathe.

Angela came in first and spotting Booth, gave him a brilliant smile. Her happiness helped Booth relax slightly. If she was that calm, it meant Bones was doing okay with all of this.

Booth hadn't been sure that she'd agree, but he should have known better.

Bones stepped through the door and he hissed out a low breath, alarmed to feel himself tear up. He brushed quickly at his eyes and squared his shoulders, not wanting to miss a moment of her walk down the aisle.

"Is my dress okay?" she whispered after arriving at his side.

"It's perfect. You're perfect." He turned her, resting his hand right where Brennan knew he would.

"The two of you," Greg said, opening his book, "will be the couple I remember long after I stop doing this. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of this a second time."

As the words were said and repeated, Booth wished time would slow. He wanted this perfect moment to last forever.

When it came time to slip the ring onto his own finger, Booth started to shake his head. But Bones give him a brilliant smile and turned to Angela. When she turned back, there was a circle of gold in the center of her palm.

"You have a ring?" he said.

Brennan glanced at Greg and he nodded at her to answer the question. "Of course I do. If I'm wearing one, you should as well. I looked it up and the circle represents infinity. I told Angela once that nothing in the universe happens once. That infinity goes in both directions. I think, no, I know, standing here this moment, that I was both right and wrong. We are getting our moment, twice, in this place. But what we feel for each other, what I feel for you, happens only once. And it should scare me," she said, sliding the ring on his finger, "but it doesn't scare me at all."

Greg smiled. "I think she said it better than I ever could. Now, by the power vested in me by the state of Nevada, I declare you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride. Again."

They made it memorable enough that not remembering the first one no longer mattered. Lifting his mouth from hers, she gifted him with a brilliant smile. "I love you, Booth."

"I love you too, Bones.

OoOoOo

Later that night in their hotel room, Brennan asked to see Booth's ring.

He held out his hand. It was the only thing he was currently wearing. "It fits fine, Bones." He twisted it on his finger, still amazed to be wearing it.

"I need you to take it off," she said.

He closed his fist quickly before she could try to pull it off herself. "Why, Bones? You just gave it to me." It had been an unsuspected surprise along with the vows she'd said when she slipped it onto his finger. He hadn't planned on ever removing it.

"Booth," she said softly. Her voice was full of love and understanding. "I don't want it back. I had something engraved on the inside. I wanted you to see it."

"Oh." Curious now, he opened the fist to take it off. "What's it say?" he asked. He tipped the ring so the inside was directed toward the light.

"There are two dates. The first one is original day we were married. And today. The original date will be the one on the marriage record. But I thought today was equally as important. And it's one that most people will never know about."

Closing his eyes he took a second to savor the moment. Then slipped the ring back on his finger.

"There's something else you should know about it," she said.

"Okay," he said slowly. He reached up to brush his knuckles long her cheek and then down her bare arm. "But I can't think of anything that could make it more special than it already is."

"Do you remember the chain I wore with my ring?"  
He laughed. "I remember, Bones. I wondered what happened to it. I figured with all that happened in the hospital that day, it was lost."

"It would have been. Except Hodgins picked it up and returned it to me later. I went back to the jeweler you used and he helped me."

Booth turned the ring on his finger and met her gaze. "Helped you what?" He was suddenly sure that he was about to be proven wrong. That somehow she'd found a way to make everything more magical.

"I had them use the necklace to craft your ring. There may have been some additional gold added, I didn't ask."

He closed his eyes and let out a shaky breath. He'd been reduced to tears more today than he had been in years.

"Booth? Did I do something wrong?" she asked. Her hand cupped his cheek, trying to figure out what she'd done.

"Hell, no. Jesus, Bones." Reaching up, he trapped her hand against his cheek. "Don't ever tell me that your heart isn't huge. What you did is more than I ever dared hope for. You gave us a chance when I wasn't sure you would, loved me, and gave me some of the most precious gifts I will ever receive in my life. You have done nothing wrong."

"I love you, Booth. Thanks for being patient with me. For giving me time to figure out what I wanted."

"I love you, Bones. Thanks for being brave. Now," he said, pulling her toward him, "let's make this second marriage as official as the first."

The End


End file.
